Mustang Madness
by butterfly collective
Summary: A followup some time after my first fanfiction where both C.J. and Matt are busy with their careers. But threats by a developer against ranchers might just push them back to working together.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

I'm still working on my other fan fiction story but it was rainy for days, I got some cabin fever, needed to cheer up a bit with something lighter and so I started working on another one. Again, I don't own the rights to the late and wonderful Aaron Spelling's characters, just borrowing them to get through the latest monsoon. It takes place sometime after the other story. I might update this one occasionally, not sure where it's going.

* * *

C.J. took Sienna out at a gallop across the meadow, as the sunlight of the mid-summer day blanketed them. Behind her, rode Jed and a couple of other ranch hands. They had left the ranch house to seek out the boundary lines between their ranch and the bordering properties as part of a survey process.

"It's a great day to be riding," she said when she pulled up by the cluster of trees which rested next to the stream which led to the great lake. She dismounted and pulled her lunch from her saddle bag. The others followed her and they all sat under the trees listening to the birds twittering in the trees and smaller creatures scattering themselves among the tall grass.

"Hey C.J.," Reed said, taking a bite from a sandwich, "When's that kid of yours getting in tomorrow?"

She laughed.

"She's not my kid," she said, "Butterfly's been staying with my friends Chris and Dan but they've got their hands full trying to figure out whether or not they need to add more rooms to their house now that a little one's on the way."

"So they hoisted her on you to babysit?"

She shook her head and took a sip from her thermos.

"No, Butterfly's a good kid, actually she's a teenager now but I love spending time with her. I think the ranch's a good place for her."

"Does she know how to ride," Jed asked.

C.J. nodded.

"A little, after all she's in Texas but I think she's a natural. She'll have plenty of opportunity out here to work on it."

"Pair her up with Sangria," Jed said, "She'll love a chance to get out again."

"Don't worry I plan to keep her very busy with helping me on this case," C.J. said, "She's discovered boys and Chris' already worried she's growing up too fast."

"Uh huh, good luck with that," Reed said, "My little brother's been useless as a ranch hand since he figured out that girls aren't so bad after all."

"What about Matt," Jed said, "When is he getting in?"

C.J. made a face.

"He's backlogged with tons of cases in L.A.," she said, "No telling when he'll have time to drop by."

"We can use his help," Jed said, "We've just gotten started with this and we could use his investigative skills."

"He knows where I am if he wants to get in touch," she said, biting into her sandwich.

"What's going on with you two?"

"Nothing," she said, "Houston is and always has been my best friend. He's got his life in L.A. and I have mine in Houston."

"Do you ever see each other?"

She studied Jed to see where he was going. She didn't think she liked it.

"I've been busy working my new job, what with the training and the workload and he's been busy with the agency in L.A. but we do visit each other once or twice a month when either of us can get away."

"Do you miss him?"

"Of course I do, what kind of question is that," she said, "But he's happy with the way things stand and I like what I've built for myself."

* * *

Matt and Brody sat in the car, waiting for their mark to walk out of the building. Matt looked through a pair of binoculars but the place looked quiet. Brody wondered if their guy was still in the building.

"Are you sure he's inside at a meeting?"

"Yes I'm sure," Matt said, "He went in the back way about two hours ago."

"Must be a long meeting then," Brody said, picking up his Hoagie and biting off the end of it.

Matt watched him, marveling not for the first time at the ingredients which Brody packed into his daily sandwiches. Anchovies, pickles and horse radish, all living together under the same roof. Still, Brody's skills as an investigator since he retired from the Los Angeles Police Department as a top homicide detective went unrivaled and Matt was always looking for people to add onto his agency to handle his increasing caseload. His good buddy, Capt. Hoyt had handed out his business cards to a couple good cops at their retirement bashes and now some of them worked for him.

"So when you taking a vacation?"

Matt looked up from his surveillance at his partner.

"What?"

"You know, heading to that little spread out in the Rockies to do whatever it is people like yourself do when you're chilling out."

"I'm too busy to have a vacation," he said, "There's an assignment out there but I have to finish up some jobs here first."

"Why," Brody said, "You have four investigators now, and another new guy from Newport Beach starting next week."

"I have to train them all."

Brody snorted.

"You haven't even trained me," he said, "We've all got law enforcement experience, something you don't have partner."

"Okay, there's the books to keep updated," Matt said, still keeping an eye on the building, "My uncle can only do so much in between engagements in his active social life."

"I met her," Brody said, "She seems like a very nice woman."

That diverted Matt's attention away from his surveillance.

"What? You mean C.J.," he said, "Of course she's nice. She's my best friend."

"If I weren't married…" Brody said, "Hell, maybe I will…"

Matt glared at him.

"Knock it off with that talk," he said, "She's been through a very rough year. She doesn't need that."

"You're certainly touchy today," Brody said, finishing his Hoagie with relish, "this week…"

"C.J.'s taking a break from her job and helping some folks out in Colorado who helped her last year," Matt said, "She's working on filing some briefs for them in federal court with other attorneys."

"Why aren't you helping her?"

"If she needed my help, she'd ask for it," Matt said, "She's more than capable of working on a lawsuit on her own and she's got help there."

"That's not what I was talking about, Matt," he said, "You obviously need a vacation and she probably would like it if her best friend visited her in beautiful mountain country."

"I'm not sure about that," Matt said, quietly.

"Ooooh, okay did I miss something?"

Matt sighed, then returned to his binoculars, putting an end to that discussion.

* * *

C.J. laid back in the tall grass and looked at the wisps of clouds traveling across the blue sky. Summer was her favorite time in the valley. Days that basked sunlight with any heat relieved by afternoon thunderstorms leaving behind nights which were pleasantly cool. Unlike Houston where nights were only a bit less layered in a blanket of humidity than the hot days and where hurricanes always threatened this time of year.

She had been back in the valley for two weeks and quickly felt as if she had never left it. Now was different because she had returned with her own name and her own life. Thea had embraced her and welcomed her back into the fold, taking good care of her and making sure she felt comfortable. She didn't ask any questions about the last year for which C.J. was thankful.

She had arrived in response to the request for help from Thea and the other ranchers about how to protect the area's mustangs from a business group that had purchased a parcel of property to build a ski and summer resort, bordering federal land where the mustangs spent a lot of their time. So she packed up her bags and brought her legal skills to the ranch and worked with other attorneys on legal arguments to produce to both the state and federal courts. Her new job licensed her to practice in federal court and she did a lot of the writing for the state court arguments as well. But she also spent a lot of time taking Sienna out and riding around the valley with several of the guys out to survey the valley and to track the movement of the bands of mustangs. She loved being back on the ranch. It allowed her to not have to think about other areas of her busy life.

"Ready to go," Jed said, walking up.

C.J. stood up, brushing her jeans.

"Yeah, we should check out the other side," she said, "Thanks for signing on for this. I know how busy you are on the ranch."

"No problem," he said, "I'm not about to let anything happen to our horses. They belong here more than we do."

"How does Bonnie feel about this?"

He chuckled.

"She doesn't mind," he said, "As long as I come home with some new poetry at the end of the day…"

She smiled as she grabbed Sienna's reins.

"I'm glad you two figured it out and got together."

"I didn't think I'd get married again in this life time," he said, "But I'm glad I did."

She swung up on her horse and chirped to her. Sienna took off loping. Jed joined her riding alongside her.

"What about you," he said, "You deserve to be happy with someone."

She shrugged.

"I'm just happy to be back doing what I love to do," she said, "And to be back here in better circumstances than my last visit."

"And that Houston guy?"

"He's the best friend a woman can ever have," she said, "He's also doing what he loves and makes him happy."

* * *

Matt looked at his watch. Two hours had passed and still no sign of the mark. Brody had knocked off a couple more Hoagies, each more outrageously constructed than the last and the odor of Anchovies permeated the car.

"You ready to go?"

"Not yet," Matt said, "We'll give him 20 more minutes."

"He probably left the same way he came in," Brody said.

"He could still be inside," Matt said.

"You have that big party you have to get to tonight," Brody said.

Matt frowned.

"The bachelor auction," he said, "I'd almost forgotten about it."

"Come on, it's for charity," Brody said, "The children's hospital, you can't let them down."

"I should have just sent them a check this year," Matt said.

"You're one of the big draws this year," Brody said, "How much do you think the highest bid will be?"

"I don't know," he said, "I haven't given it any thought."

"I can tell," Brody said, "What are you offering as a date?

Matt looked back through the binoculars.

"There he is," he said as a man left the building after talking with two others.

"Son of a gun," Brody said, "We'd better get this show on the road."

"We'll tail him and see where he winds up," Matt said, starting the car which he did after several tries, "Where'd you pick up this heap anyway?"

"Impound lot," Brody said, "It's old but it's a beaut, isn't it?"

The two of them followed closely behind the Cadillac as it left the parking lot.

* * *

"Look at that," C.J. said, pointing to the two mustangs grazing near them.

"It's a mare and her colt," Jed said, "The rest of them are probably close by. Watch out for the stallion if he's nearby."

C.J. got off of her horse, took the camera out of her saddlebag and approached the pair.

"Which ones do you think these are?"

"They're pinto and look at the mark on the hindquarters of the mare," Jed said, "I think it's Lola. She's about 10 years old."

She snapped their photos. Neither horse looked up while they nibbled on the grass.

Jed dismounted and walked up next to her.

"They are beautiful," C.J. said.

"When we have time to go to the south valley, we'll see more of them."

"I'm looking forward to that," C.J. said, then looked at the sky, "We'd better head back now before the daily monsoon hits."

"Bonnie's coming home early tonight," he said, "You're welcome to come to dinner."

C.J. nodded.

"I'd love to."

They mounted their horses and rode back to the ranch house, making it there just ahead of the summer storm.

* * *

"I told you to turn left on Olive," Brody said.

"No, you said to keep going," Matt said, "Now I have to go and shower before I can go home and get ready for this damn auction."

Roy looked up from where he sat at his computer as both men exited the elevator into the penthouse office.

"Rough day," he asked, sipping from his brandy.

"Brody and I were tailing the target on the Myer case and we took a wrong turn," he said.

"You look like you fell into a mud bath," Roy said.

"That was after the car stalled and we had to push it out of the mud."

"It's my fault, Roy," Brody said, "I shouldn't have reminded Matt about the charity auction."

"Oh yes, tonight at the Hilton," Roy said, "I have to say I'm looking forward to it. I think my offer of an evening with me at the Palm Springs Film Festival will attract some good bidding."

"I haven't figured out what entertainment I was planning to offer up," Matt said.

Roy frowned.

"That's not like you Matlock," he said, "Usually you're on top of these charity events especially this one."

"I know Uncle Roy but I've been so busy," he said.

"I thought hiring more investigators was going to help lighten your work load," Roy said.

"That's what I hoped," Matt said, "Listen has anyone called?"

"Anyone like who," Roy said, "You know you get a lot of phone calls during the day. Business is booming even in a recession."

"Any calls from…"

"You mean has C.J. called asking you to run over to Colorado to help her?"

"Has she called?"

Roy winked at Brody.

"No, any special reason why she would?"

Matt frowned.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"It means that she invited you to come out and help her out in that ranch in Colorado," Roy said, "But she didn't beg you to come, she left it up to you."

"She made it clear she could handle it on her own," Matt said.

"She said she could, doesn't mean that she wanted to," Roy said, "But that's not your problem, getting ready for this charity auction, now that's a problem."

"I've got to hit the shower and get this mud off me before I can even go home and change into that penguin suit."

He walked off and both Roy and Brody watched him go.

"Looks like he's really looking forward to tonight," Brody said.

"As much as he would a root canal," Roy said.

* * *

C.J. walked into the cabin and turned on the lights. The living room awaited her and she sank on the couch and picked up her phone. She had opted for the two bedroom cabin because it included office space and also a loft. In the back was a kitchen with a breathtaking view of the mountains from a window but she ate most of her meals at the ranch house with the hands.

She called Chris back in Houston.

"Hi, how you doing?"

"When I'm not throwing up, pretty good actually," Chris answered ruefully.

"Is morning sickness really that bad?"

"The doctor says I've only got maybe a month to go before I'm in the clear."

"I'm really happy for you and Dan," C.J. said, "How's Butterfly taking it?"

"She's on the fence I think," Chris said, "Happy one moment, snappy the next."

"It's called being a teenager," C.J. said, "I'm looking forward to seeing her. I'll be out at the airport to meet her plane."

Chris laughed.

"Thanks loads for this," she said, "Her grandmother's getting frail and can't keep up with her so she's living here now and after that whole thing with her boyfriend…"

"We've all been there," C.J. said, "Some of us more than once."

"She's upset that she can't see him anymore," Chris said, "She'll probably tell you all about it when she gets there."

"She'll be busy enough on the ranch helping me with this case," C.J. said, "I know she loves horses."

"Do you think this is going to be that easy," Chris said, "Going against major developers? I've heard in other places that can get pretty rough."

"We'll be fine here," C.J. said, "Nothing's happened yet."

"Well, maybe you should call Matt…"

"I asked him to come if he wanted to and he said he's tied up with lots of clients in L.A."

"You know you mean much more to him than any of those clients do."

C.J. sighed.

"I know that, but I'm not going to push him to come out here if he's really busy."

* * *

Matt fiddled with his tuxedo tie and tried to remember how to tie it. Uncle Roy looked at him and smiled.

"You mean you made it up to now without ever learning how to tie it?"

Roy had dropped by to share a ride with Matt in a limousine to add ambience to the event. Although Matt could afford dozens of limousines, he hated riding in them. He had wanted to take his new Corvette but the auction organizers nixed that preferring that all of the bachelors and event sponsors step onto the red carpet outside the hotel from limousines for the paparazzi.

"Ready to go," Roy said.

Matt nodded.

"Let's get going," he said, picking up his formal jacket.

"You know you could act more like you're going off to have a great time," Roy said, "It adds to the experience."

"Don't you think it's a bit dehumanizing to be auctioned off like a slab of meat," Matt said, slipping on his jacket as they left the beach house. The limousine and a bored chauffeur waited for them.

"It's for a good cause," Roy said, "And you'll attract a lot of attention after making PEOPLE's Sexiest Multi-Millionaire Alive in last year's issue."

He had missed that because he had been recovering from when he and C.J. had been trying to bring down a notorious human trafficker. They had spent some time in Houston after returning home and C.J. had remained there starting her training for a new job and recovering from her ordeal. He had hated returning to Los Angeles but he had to take care of his business and she had told him to go do what he needed to do. But once he got back to town, he soon found himself inundated in cases. If possible his long absence and the aftermath had put him in even bigger demand as a private investigator.

But his uncle had laminated the full-page photo of him standing on his yacht from the magazine and placed it in a place of prominence in the lobby of the penthouse office in Century City. C.J. during one of her rare visits had raised an eyebrow at it and chuckled with several of his office assistants to Matt's chagrin.

He and his uncle stepped inside the limousine to head off to the auction. Matt pulled on his bow tie most of the way while his uncle sat back with his eyes closed listening to jazz music from the speakers.

* * *

C.J. knocked on the door. Bonnie opened it and let her into the small house.

"I brought something," C.J. said and handed her the wine bottle. Bonnie inspected the label.

"That's good vintage. It will go well with the beef," she said, "I turned that over to Jed to handle and stuck with the side dishes."

C.J. walked through the living room.

"It smells good," she said.

They both walked into the kitchen where Jed carved a slab of meat onto a large plate which he set next to the salad bowl and vegetable and rice dishes. They prepared their plates and took them to the living room to enjoy.

Bonnie poured the wine that C.J. had brought into glasses.

"So how the mustangs doing," she asked.

"The ones we saw today looked really good," C.J. said, slicing her meat.

"Do you really think that this development firm can be stopped?"

C.J. nodded.

"I think if Jason and I file the papers in both the federal and state court in Denver, it should look pretty good."

"You like Jason?"

C.J. looked at Bonnie, quizzically.

"Of course I do," she said, "He's an excellent attorney and we both share the same alma mater. He was third year when I started."

"Bonnie…" Jed said, shaking his head.

She feigned innocence.

"What, Jed?"

"Why are you always trying to set people up," Jed said, "Watch out, she's hooked three couples together so far this year."

"Two are going to the altar…eventually."

Jed laughed at his wife. C.J. looked at the both of them and knew it was all in fun.

"Wait a minute," C.J. said, "You're the local matchmaker?"

"Actually, it's just a hobby of mine," Bonnie said, "I might start my own business some day with a couple more successful matches of course."

C.J. looked back and forth between Jed and his wife.

"You can be perfectly happy on your own," she said, "Women don't have to even have relationships with men let alone get married these days."

"Oh I know," Bonnie said, "it's just that I believed that too until the day I met Jed and just knew I had to have him in my life and I've never regretted it."

Jed smiled at his wife. He couldn't argue with that.

* * *

Matt mingled with the other guests in the spacious ballroom, tugging at his tie most of the time. He found himself by the bar ordering a gin and tonic.

A blond woman standing next to a nearby ice sculpture of a man had been watching him. She flashed a smile at him when he looked over at her. He smiled back wondering if he was supposed to know who she was and deciding he didn't. She walked on over, still wearing her smile.

"Hi, you look lost here," she said.

" No, I'm just trying to figure out what the ice sculpture is supposed to be. Is it Michelangelo's David?"

She eyed it carefully.

"No, it can't be because it's missing something."

Matt remembered.

"Ah yes, indeed it is," he said, "My mistake. Art History wasn't one of my better subjects in college."

She laughed.

"That blush puts a nice color in your face," she said, "Actually it's Adonis."

"Now I see it," he said, nodding.

"Hi, I'm Ginger, Ginger Winslow," she said, extending her hand, "I work for the art museum in West L.A. in marketing."

He took her hand.

"I'm Matt Houston," he said, "I own and run a private investigation firm in town."

She smiled.

"Oh yes, you're the multi-millionaire who took his corporation public to focus on investigations."

"Actually, the company's profits all go to my charitable foundation," Matt said, "It's based in Houston."

She looked at her program.

"And you're on the list of eligible bachelors to be auctioned off tonight," she said, "I'll remember that when it's time to bid."

"You might want to save your money and bid on my uncle," Matt said, "He's offering an evening at a major film festival."

"What are you offering as a date for the lucky bidder?"

He hesitated.

"I'm not sure yet," he said, "I haven't given it much thought."

Her eyes narrowed.

"How long did you know about this auction?"

"A while," Matt said, "But I've been really busy."

She looked him over with a skeptical eye.

"Are you sure you're up for this?"

"No…yes, I've done this every year," he said, "I've always enjoyed the experience."

"I can tell," she said.

Uncle Roy walked over with a martini in hand to check on his nephew.

"The auction's just about to get started," he said, looking at the attractive woman standing with Matt.

"I won't keep you," Ginger said, with a smile as she walked off.

* * *

C.J. sat on the sofa in the living room with Jed and Bonnie, finishing up the rest of the wine.

"That dinner was delicious," she said, "And your key lime pie, is the best I've ever tasted."

Bonnie smiled and put her plate down.

"So how are things going with Jason?"

"We're just working together on this case," C.J. said, "He's a really nice guy but that's all there's to it."

"Are you sure?"

C.J. sighed.

"Definitely," she said, "I'm just not at the point in my life when I'm looking for a relationship."

"I know you've been through a lot," Bonnie said, "But I just want you to be happy."

"I am," C.J. said, taking another sip of her wine, "You don't need to worry."

"Uh huh," Bonnie said.

"Look, it's getting late and I'd better head back," C.J. said, "Jed and I have to head out early tomorrow so I can meet with Jason and his legal assistant in town later on."

Jed walked in and sighed at his wife.

"I'll walk back with you your place," he said, "After what happened last week, I don't want you walking home at night."

"We don't know if anything did happen," C.J. said, "It could have been someone with too much to drink."

"Maybe," Jed said, "but better to be safe than sorry."

* * *

Matt lined up with the other bachelors and watched his uncle step up on the stage and be introduced to the audience. Once the auctioneer pounded the gavel, the signs went up immediately. The bidding became fast and furious, so much so Matt could barely keep up.

"Going, going gone, for $10,000," the auctioneer yelled slamming his gavel as everyone applauded.

Matt looked up in shock as his uncle stepped down from the stage with a spring in his step and looking very pleased with himself. As he passed his nephew, he winked at him, daring him to try to beat _that_ winning bid.

A well-known news anchor and a television actor preceded him in line. He began pulling on his collar again since his tie was a mess. He turned to look at the audience, the massive wall of well-dressed and coiffed guests and his eyes caught Ginger's. She smiled for him and gave him a little wave.

Suddenly, his phone vibrated on his belt. He flipped it open and saw Brody's name on his Caller ID. He sighed, watching as the auctioneer closed the bidding on the newsman.

"What's up Brody," Matt said, "You picked a great time to call. I'm just about to be auctioned off."

Laughter filled the phone on the other end.

"This isn't funny," Matt said, "My uncle raised $10,000 for the hospital."

"You can raise a bid higher than that my friend," Brody said.

"I should have given them a check this year," Matt said.

"And pass up a chance to have a crowd of attractive women bid on a chance to go out with you," Brody said, "Did you ever figure out where you would be taking the lucky winner?"

"Never mind," Matt said, eying the auction, "Why are you calling me?"

"Dude, there's some serious action outside the Marriot," Brody said, "Your mark on the Martin case showed up. I've been tailing him for over an hour."

"He showed up here?"

"Just outside the front door," Brody said, "Are you coming?"

"I can't," Matt said, "I'm up next."

"This might be our only chance," Brody said, "but don't worry about it. I think I can handle him on my own."

Matt looked up and saw an attractive woman escort the actor off stage to a sea of more applause.

"I'm up right now," he said, preparing to walk up on the stage.

Suddenly a woman screamed and he looked across the room and saw her wrestling with a man who was stealing her purse. Matt jumped off the stage, taking a couple people down with him. He pushed his way through the crowd towards where he had heard the calls for help. He ran and towards the end of the crowd, people began getting the hint and parted before him like he was Moses and it was the Red Sea. Suddenly right in front of him popped up the table with the Adonis ice sculpture. With no time to avoid it, he jumped on the table with his hands in front of him and just missed Adonis as he leapt off the table onto the floor.

Unfortunately, Adonis wobbled and tipped too far in one direction and toppled right off the table, shattering into millions of small shards on the ballroom floor. Men and women started screaming and running for the exits, while the emcees of the auction plead with them to calm down. Matt reached the man and woman who were struggling and jumped onto the man, knocking him into the buffet table, which collapsed to the floor sending stuffed olives and pigs wrapped in a blanket flying like missiles into the guests' faces. The two of them rolled on the floor, knocking over the punch bowl and sending it on its side, splashing the city's mayor and his wife with a rainbow sherbet and club soda concoction that an elderly woman had covertly spiked with some vodka hidden in her large purse.

Finally, Matt pinned the guy on the ground, and pulled the purse out of his grasp. Brody came running up, out of breath.

"Did he get the flash drive," he asked.

Matt dumped out the purse and falling out of one of the pockets was the flash drive in question which Matt and Brody knew contained valuable information about some of the local business proposals that unscrupulous developers were after to get the upper hand in the bidding processes for those projects. He knew that the little device in his hand was easily worth high six-figures.

He looked up and saw a crowd of guests gathering around them. He stood up, dragging the man up on his feet with him. Brody grabbed his other arm.

Suddenly, one person in the crowd started clapping and soon enough, so was everyone else.

* * *

C.J. and Jed walked down the dirt road back to her cabin. The night was pleasant, and not too chilly. Stars filled the sky and silence surrounded them, except for the movements of animals through the brush.

"Thanks for rescuing me," C.J. said, with a laugh, "I know Bonnie means well but this isn't the easiest subject for me to discuss."

He shrugged.

"C.J., you'll know when you're ready to have a relationship," Jed said, "It has to be on your own time table, no one else's not even my wife's."

She looked at him.

"You understand, don't you," she said, "Was it like this for you after your wife died?"

He nodded.

"I couldn't even think of going out with any woman for years after she died," he said, "I felt like I was betraying her memory."

"Sometimes I think I'm ready, but then I realize I'm just not there yet."

"You've been through a lot in the past year," Jed said, "You need time to feel like you're ready to put that all behind you and are ready to open up again."

She nodded.

"I hope I get to that point," she said, "I've been working really hard at it."

"You will," Jed said, "I did and I'm a much harder case than you. Just don't beat yourself up about it and accept that some things have their own time lines."

* * *

Capt. Hoyt looked at Matt and Brody.

"I should have known when I got this call about chaos at the downtown bachelor charity auction, your prints would be all over it."

Matt looked at Brody.

"We caught the guy who was after the information on the development projects at the marina."

Hoyt waved his hand.

"He's in the car waiting to be taken to the station," he said, "But look at this place."

They all did and indeed it looked like a tornado had gone through the ballroom.

"Adonis was the only real casualty," Matt said, looking at the huge puddle of water which was all that remained of the sculpture.

"Those ice sculptures don't come cheap."

"They can bill me, Hoyt."

"Maybe they can continue the auction Matt and whatever amount you bring in, can be used to pay for the damages," Brody said.

Matt glared at his partner.

"Just kidding," Brody said, backing off.

Ginger walked up to the two men.

"Nice performance," she said, "When they said that entertainment would be provided, this wasn't what came to mind."

"Ginger…"

She gave Matt her card.

"Give me a call sometime and we can continue this auction of sorts in a more private venue."

She walked off and both Hoyt and Brody looked at Matt.

Brody whistled.

"Hot damn," he said, "That's one fine looking woman."

"Well, she might have bid on me and gotten a date with me if it hadn't been for you," Matt said.

"A date where," Brody said, "You didn't even have that decided before the auction."

"I had a couple of places in mind," Matt said, "I just hadn't settled on any one of them."

Brody rolled his eyes.

"Come on, we both know you had no clue where you were going to take the highest bidder," Brody said, "You're going to go home and call C.J. and tell her all about it."

Matt frowned.

"She's been too busy working on her case to return my calls."

Hoyt looked at the both of them.

"I think I'll leave you and take this man into custody," he said, then wagged a finger at them, "And if I could go more than a couple of days without receiving a call about the destruction of private or public property that has your names on it, I could toss out my antacids."

With that, Hoyt walked off.

"Matt are you ready to go home," Roy said, "The limousine's waiting for us."

"Oh yeah, Uncle Roy, I'm more than ready to get out of here."

Brody looked at the both of them.

"Look I got to get going," he said, "Remember stake out tomorrow morning, six sharp at the marina."

Matt nodded, wondering if he really needed that vacation that Brody always nagged him to take and if so, would he ever take it.

* * *

Jed and C.J. reached the front door of her cabin and she said goodbye to him. She walked inside and closed the door behind her.

The evening had relaxed her as she felt comfortable hanging out with Jed and Bonnie who she counted as among her closest friends in the world. Bonnie had meant well, but when she brought up Jason, C.J. found her walls going up again. The walls that she still often built up to guard her against any questions about whether or not she was interested in pursuing any relationships with Jason or any man. She had made tremendous progress in rebuilding her life in the past year but still, thinking about building intimacy with the opposite gender made her uncomfortable. That had already gotten her into trouble once.

On her way to her bedroom, she passed her phone. She thought about calling him, but dropped that thought and headed off to heat some water for some chamomile tea before going to bed. After she boiled water and used that to steep her tea, she headed back to the living room and picked up her phone.

Matt and Roy rode back to the beach house in the limousine, both lost in their own thoughts. Roy basked in the enjoyment of the bachelor auction and his future outing with an attractive and intelligent woman at the upcoming film festival while Matt considered the disastrous end to the auction to be anything but a bad end. He actually felt relieved that he hadn't gone through with the auction which struck him as strange because usually, he enjoyed the event or at least he had in past years. And he always showed the women who bid highest for a date with him a good time. Just not this year.

His phone rang. He picked it up and looked and saw that the area code was from Colorado. He held it to his ear.

"Hello C.J.," he said.

"Hi Houston," she said, "I hope I'm not disturbing you."

"No, no you're not," he said, "It's always nice to hear from you."

"I just wanted to tell you that things are going smoothly out here and I might not need an investigator after all."

"Not need an investigator," Matt said, "So you don't need me to come out there and help you?"

"If you want to come out to the ranch, you're more than welcome," she said, "But I don't want you to rush through your caseload on my account."

"Meaning you can handle things without me," he said.

"Jason and I are almost ready to finish up our initial brief for federal court," she said, "Jed and the other hands are helping me with the mustang surveys."

"I was kind of looking forward to going out there," Matt said.

"You were?"

"Brody said I needed a vacation but I've got to get a handle on these newer cases until my new hires are trained."

"I understand," she said, "Don't worry about it. I can handle things fine on this end. Good night."

"C.J. wait…"

She waited.

"I just want to say I really miss you," he said, "And I've been thinking about you since you left."

"I've been thinking too," she said. "Well, I better head off to bed. I have an early day tomorrow."

"So do I," he said, "Good night."

He clicked off the phone and caught his uncle looking at him.

"Don't start," he warned.

"I wouldn't know where to begin," Roy said with a sigh.

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"Oh…nothing," Roy said, "I think it's time to play some music."

He reached for the stereo system and soon jazz music filled the car. It didn't do much to soothe Matt's bad mood which continued all the way home. And when he got home and his uncle had left, he found himself standing on the balcony of his beach house looking at the sliver of moon which hung over the horizon. He listened to the tide of the ocean lap on the shore and he felt lonely.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2 Another installment of this one. Hopefully, I'll have more time this weekend to work on both of them. Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoy them and thanks for the comments.

* * *

Matt sat with Brody in another car staking out the marina but so far, no one had appeared at a small craft parked in one of the slips by a snack bar and tack shop. Brody sat next to him with one of his Hoagies in hand. Pungent red onions joined Anchovies among the medley of odors this morning.

"I don't know if he's going to show," Matt said.

"Let's give him another hour and then call it a morning," Brady said, sipping some ginger ale, "Would you like a sandwich?"

Matt grimaced.

"No thanks, I already ate at the office."

Brody picked up the daily newspaper.

"We made the society page this morning," he said, thumbing that section open to the coverage of the bachelor auction and its aftermath.

"I'd rather forget that ever happened."

"You were a hit," Brody said, "I bet it's not every year one of the bachelor's jumps off the stage during the bidding and collars a nefarious criminal."

"The bidding hadn't started yet, Brody," Matt said, looking at the boat again.

Still nobody coming or going.

"What about that woman," Brody said, "She sure had the hots for you and when she finds out how much you're worth, she'll put those hooks in you as well."

Matt turned to look at his partner, irritated.

"You don't know that," he said, "Why do you think all women are gold diggers?"

"Before I met the wonderful missus who gave me two wonderful children, I got burned more than once by the fairer sex."

"How many turned you down?"

Brody laughed.

"Not many," he said, "Certainly not as many as you're thinking."

Matt turned back to the boat with his binoculars.

"Are you sure we're in the right spot," he said, "Doesn't look like much is going on there."

"That's what my source said and he hasn't been wrong yet."

"We'll give it another hour," Matt said, "We still have that meeting with the new client."

"I booked us at that new restaurant downtown," Brody said, "The best sushi in L.A."

Matt made a face.

"Sushi?"

"I know that's not your thing but this is an upscale client," Brody said, "Steak and baked potatoes aren't going to cut it for this power luncheon and it's too heavy a meal this early in the day."

Matt looked at Brody's Hoagie.

"That's just a snack," Brody said, picking it up and taking another healthy bite.

Matt sighed and looked at his watch again before watching the boat for any sign of life.

* * *

C.J. left the cabin early in the morning and drove the rover up to the ranch house to eat breakfast. Thea cooked the best huevos rancheros in the area and all the hands were already in the kitchen scooping them onto their plates to take back to the big table. Jed already sat down and dove his fork into his breakfast. She got her plate of food and sat next to him.

"So you're going to have a meeting with Jason today," he said.

"Yeah, Jason's rented a place in Silver Lode for a couple of months while we work on this lawsuit. We're meeting at the diner."

"The developers are going to file their permit with the planning office sometime this week if it's approved at the meeting tonight in town," Jed said, "So the initial paperwork has to be filed with the courts."

"Are the Flynns going to sell their land to them?"

Jed shrugged.

"I don't know," he said, "I hope not, because it's one of the spots where the mares shelter with their foals after they have them."

"I talked to Clara and she said she didn't want to sell," Thea said, "But the negotiators as they called them sent by the development firm have been putting pressure on them."

C.J. ran her hand through her hair.

"We don't have much time then," she said, "We might have to file a TRO, a temporary restraining order against any proposed action on the Flynn ranch. It's right next to the federal land."

"The development firm already owns the parcel next where the Wyatt ranch used to be," Jed said, "If the Flynns don't sell, they might go for Eminent Domain."

"It's tougher to win that for private development but hardly impossible," C.J. said, "A lot will depend on the mayor and the city council's input into this process."

Jed laughed.

"The city council and business owners in Silver Lode might want the ski resort," he said, "It's the ranchers who don't."

Thea brought her plate to sit down beside them.

"So do you think a restraining order might be necessary?"

C.J. frowned.

"Maybe," she said, finishing up her eggs," But it's something we want to use only as a last resort."

Thea nodded.

"This valley's survived without a ski resort for over 150 years," she said, "We don't need to turn into another Aspen."

"Jason and I and the other members of the legal team are going to do our best to make sure that doesn't happen," C.J. said, "And that the mustangs stay free and happy in the valley."

"And we're going to get the surveyor's map done this week to send to the BLM and the county seat," Jed said, "We made a lot of progress the past couple of days."

"You sound like you're both working very hard," Thea said, "Are there enough of you to do all this?"

C.J. and Jed looked at each other.

"We're fine," C.J. said.

"What about Matt," Thea said, "He was going to fly in and help you with the investigative legwork."

"He's busy back in L.A. with a full load of clients to take care of," C.J. said, "We'll have to make do without him."

"Are you sure you can do that?"

C.J. paused.

"We'll be fine," she said, "And if his schedule does clear up, he can always come out here and lend a hand. I'm not going anywhere for a while."

* * *

Matt saw the man leave the boat and knew he had to move quickly.

"Get on the phone to Hoyt," he told Brody after taking his gun out.

"Matt, what are you going to do when you catch up to him?"

"Just give Hoyt a call, okay?"

Matt jumped out of the car and sped off after the man who looked up and after seeing him, took off in the other direction running alongside the dock. Matt sprinted across the lot hurdling a couple of benches before reaching where the boats were tied. The man ran about 10 yards ahead of him and after he looked behind him to see Matt, he picked up his pace. Matt pursued him, navigating pedestrians like a slalom ski run. Until both of them reached the end of the pier and were facing only the bay. The man turned around and looked at Matt.

Matt pointed his gun at the man.

"All right, end of the road," he said, "Unless you want to jump in the harbor and swim to Catalina, you're not going to see any dry land."

"What do you want," the man yelled, "My boss told me you might show up."

"I want the rest of the names," Matt said, "We caught your partner last night and picked up a flash drive of some file names. We need the rest of them."

The man fidgeted.

"What makes you think there are more names?"

"Because your partner told us in police custody," Matt said, "Now why would he be giving us false information?"

Brody ran up behind Matt, also armed with a gun. Sirens sounded as police cars blocked off the other end of the dock. Hoyt and the cavalry, Matt thought. He hoped the man would calmly put up his hands and surrender. No such luck. Instead, he looked behind him, spun around quickly and jumped in the water. Matt looked up and saw a motorboat puttering towards him.

"No…" he said and jumped in the harbor to go after his man before he could escape. Now Matt was a powerful swimmer but his clothes weighed him down a bit and he began losing ground to the man. He pushed harder and the man kept looking behind him to check his progress. Matt pushed his aching muscles to swim harder and he reached the man, then grabbed him by the collar and started pulling him back towards the dock.

The man didn't like that much and struggled. The motor boat approached. Suddenly, the man on that boat took an oar and tried to hit Matt with it to help his accomplice. Matt still holding onto one man reached out to grab the oar from the other guy who held onto it. Suddenly, that man joined the two of them treading water in the harbor.

The police crowded the edge of the dock with their guns drawn. Brody looked at them and thought, oh god, they're going to shoot everyone.

"Don't shoot Matt," Brody said, "He's the good guy…most of the time."

Hoyt came up and ordered the other men to put their weapons down. Matt and the two men in the drink looked up and saw all the police. The two criminals looked at each other then decided to pack it in.

Twenty minutes later, Matt stood on the dock with a blanket around him and Brody slapping him on the shoulder.

"Jumping into the harbor was a bit over the top," he critiqued, "That harbor's a mess. I hope you're up to date on your shots."

"Did Hoyt take them back to the station," Matt asked.

"Yeah, but he's not too happy with you or me for that matter," Brody said, "Still I think he believed most of our story."

Matt sighed.

"Those two are connected to an operation that the guy spilled on last night," he said, "Somebody's scamming the city on development projects."

"Well, he wants us to drop by the station and talk about that," Brody said, "But I told him we have that lunch meeting first which…"

Brody looked at his watch.

"We'll just about make it too if we book on over there."

"I have to stop by the office and change my clothes," Matt said, trying not to count how many times he had made that statement in the past week.

Brody looked him over.

"You definitely need to change your clothes."

"Maybe I do need that vacation," Matt said, as they walked back to the car.

"I'm not the one stopping you partner," Brody said.

"The Rockies are nice this time of year," Matt said, as he settled into the driver's seat.

"Now you're talking," Brody said, "And what C.J.'s working on can't be any more dangerous and difficult than these cases. It will be a good opportunity for you to get away and relax in God's country."

"She said she didn't need an investigator when she called last night," he said, "She said she had everything under control."

"Did she say she didn't want you to come out?"

Matt shook his head.

"No, just that she could handle the lawsuit fine with the team of lawyers she's working with," he said, "And I know Jed and some of the hands are helping her with the field work."

They drove back to Century City back to the agency's office.

"None of them are you with your skills," Brody said, "Which are almost as fine-tuned as my own."

"Jed's an ex-cop, like you."

"Well, that will help a lot," Bryce said, adjusting the rear view mirror as they exited the freeway, "But like I said, none of them are you."

Matt studied him.

"Are you talking about investigative skills?"

Brody gave him a sharp look.

"Of course, what did you think I was talking about?"

* * *

C.J. and Jason had taken over a corner booth at the diner next to Bonnie's grocery store and ate burgers and fries while Jason typed on his laptop.

"Do you have that document on the transfer of ownership," he asked.

C.J. fished through the stack of papers and pulled it out.

"Here it is," she said, "It's a copy of the sales slip on the first parcel that the firm purchased last year."

"I wrote on a case like this when I did law review," Jason said, "I think some of the same case law still applies."

She leaned over him to look at the computer screen.

"It should work," she said, then looked at her watch, "I have about an hour or so left here and then I've got to go pick up Butterfly at the airport."

He nodded.

"That will work," he said, "We'll have enough done to be able to file it tomorrow."

Two men entered the diner.

"Look who's here," Jason said.

C.J. looked up from her work and saw one of the developers, a tall man with salt and pepper hair named Steve Kilroy and Calvin Parker the town's mayor. The two men had already spotted them in the small establishment and were heading over.

"Hello, Mr. Stewart, Ms Parsons," Kilroy said, "Nice to run into both of you in town."

They both looked up at the two men.

"Nice to see you," C.J. said.

"Have you met Mr. Steve Kilroy," Parker said, "He's trying to bring business to our fair town and get it on the map. Some folks are trying to stop the direction of progress."

C.J. cocked her head.

"You're talking about the ranchers," she said, "They like the way the valley's been for the past 100 years for their animals and their families. They don't think it needs that kind of progress."

"If they didn't have a bunch of outsiders telling them what to do…" Parker said.

"They came to us to ask for our help," C.J. said, "They had already come to a decision on this issue. Unless you don't believe that they can think for themselves."

"They're too caught up in the old ways," Parker said, "If we stick to the old life, this town will flounder and dry up."

"You mean, there will be less green lining up some pockets," Jason said, "Like yours."

Parker's face flushed.

"I'm not making any money off of this deal," Parker said, "I'm only interested in the well being of Silver Lode and its economic future."

"Uh huh," Jason said, "And how much money is Kilroy and his partners dropping into your reelection campaign next fall?"

"What are you implying?"

"I'll finish this discussion at the town council meeting later," Jason said.

Parker and Kilroy looked at each other.

"There's no need for you to bother yourselves with dropping in on that meeting," Parker said, "We have the votes to approve the next phase of this project."

"You know what they say," Jason said, "Don't count your votes before they're cast."

Kilroy looked at C.J.

"And what is your part in all this?"

"I'm on the legal team," she said, "I'm representing the ranchers of this valley."

"Well, little lady this is already a done deal," Kilroy said, "The city council and mayor will just tie it up with a nice little bow tonight."

"Don't be too sure," C.J. said.

"Oh we're sure," Kilroy said, "Didn't you hear what the mayor said? You can't stand in the way of progress."

"We've got work to do," C.J. said, "Unless you have anything else to say."

"The both of you might as well pack up and go home," Parker said, "You're way over your heads here which you'll find out if you keep pursuing this."

Without another word, the two men stomped out of the diner.

"So do you think we should take their advice and skip the meeting tonight," Jason said.

"Hell no," C.J. said, smiling, "I think it's going to live up to the hype."

* * *

Matt showered and changed into one of his collection of suits he kept at the office just in case he needed to change clothes and he and Brody headed to the sushi restaurant to meet their new client.

A waiter showed them to a table where a man sat, dining on some shrimp rolls.

Brody sat down and ordered while Matt sat next to him and daydreamed about a luscious steak, cooked medium rare next to fried potatoes crisped on the edges. And right next to it, a cold beer just out of the refrigerator.

"Are you sure you don't want anything," Brody said.

Matt shook his head.

"My partner," Brody said to the man, "He ate a huge breakfast."

The other man nodded.

"I'm Douglas Fortworth," the man said, "I've been having this affair with this beautiful woman that I met on the road."

Matt put his hand up.

"Now wait a minute," he said, "We don't handle domestic matters."

He raised his brows at Brody who shrugged back.

"Oh no, that's okay," Fortworth said, "I can handle the relationship part but the problem is I'm being blackmailed by some unknown person who's threatening to spill to the tabloids and my wife about the girlfriend if I don't pay a $1 million in large bills by Saturday."

"Tabloids," Brady said, "Are you someone famous?"

"Why yes, I wrote the best seller on building more fulfilling relationships with the opposite sex. Some say that men and women are from different planets, both uninhabited but we're all the same. We want a partner who will love us unconditionally and who we can trust."

"Can't argue with that," Brody said, munching on a California roll.

"Unconditional love and trust," Matt said, "And which of those does your wife get if you don't mind me asking?"

Fortworth paused.

"She gets to shop at Saks and Tiffany's if I sign a contract for a new talk show on love and relationships in the 21st century but this blackmail thing is complicating the negotiations."

Matt leaned back in his chair.

"Any chance your female companion could be in cahoots with your blackmailer?"

Fortworth stroked his chin.

"You know I hadn't thought about that," he said.

"Well maybe you should," Matt said, "That's often the case more than people think."

"Okay, I'll check into that," Fortworth said, scribbling notes on a pad of paper next to him.

"How's the blackmailer communicating with you?"

"He sent me flowers yesterday, some beautiful Begonias and the blackmail threat was included with the card."

Matt and Brody looked at each other.

* * *

Jason and C.J. packed up their equipment.

"Do you think we're ready for tonight?"

C.J. looked at her watch.

"We got about a couple of hours," she said, "Maggie should be meeting us there."

"I think it's going to be a packed house," Jason said, "I'm hoping that the ranchers come out in force."

"Jed and I spoke with many of them and they said they planned on being there."

"That's great," he said, "Well, I'll see you at the meeting."

C.J. nodded.

They walked out to their cars. A distance away two men sat in a car, watching them leave.

* * *

"Don't look at me that way," Brody said, as he and Matt left the restaurant.

"That gentleman in there is probably getting bilked by his girlfriend," Matt said, as they walked to the parking lot.

"How do you know it's not his wife?"

"The begonias wouldn't have had any flowers attached to them."

Brody nodded.

"Look, I think there's still a case there," Brody said.

"He should go to the police and report it," Matt said.

"Obviously he can't or he would have done that already."

Matt unlocked the car.

"We're not that kind of agency," he said.

"I know that, but this guy's desperate," Brody said, "He needs someone to help him."

"He needs a marriage counselor, not a P.I."

Matt started the car and pulled out of the lot, tires squealing.

"Man, you need a vacation," Brody said.

"Don't start with that," Matt said, "There's way too much cases to close out before I can even think about it."

"C.J. needs you," Brody said, reaching around for his Hoagie.

Matt found it near where he sat and tossed it to Brody, who quickly unwrapped it.

"She's handling herself very well in Colorado," Matt said, "And she insists she doesn't need my investigative skills."

"Well how 'bout just having her best friend spend some time with her?"

"She's as busy there as I'm here," Matt said.

"When did you two get too busy for each other," Brody said, "All I've heard about since I started working with you is this legendary friendship between the two of you and when I saw her that morning in your office, I could see that there was something to all that talk."

Matt's phone rang. He picked it up.

"Hi Uncle Roy, what's up?"

"Hoyt called you," Roy said, "He wants you down at the station pronto."

"Is it about the men apprehended this morning?"

"Yes," Roy said, "They've been linked to that gentleman that you apprehended at the auction last night."

"That's good news," Matt said, "Anything else?"

"Yes, the sponsors of the charity auction called this morning and they're definitely inviting you back next year."

"I think I'll just mail them a check," he said clicking his phone shut.

* * *

C.J. rode Sienna to her favorite spot by the group of trees near where the new barn stood after being rebuilt during a community raising the previous year. She dismounted and sat beneath the tree, watching the wind part the shafts of tall grass which grew across the meadow, tinged brown by the heat of the summer.

Last year, she had helped rebuild the barn with the other residents of the valley. She and Matt not long after they had returned back to Texas. Only she stayed in Texas and Matt went back to run his agency back in L.A. She spent most of her time training and working on her new business which was consulting and offering legal assistance to federal agencies and other entities which helped women. She had spent the last year working hard to rebuild her life which had nearly been taken away from her, from the ground up. But she missed her best friend who had risked his life to help her come back home and to help her deal with the aftermath of life on the run.

Chris and her other friends who lived and worked in Houston had also been instrumental in helping her get her life back and she had created a rewarding life for herself. Still after months of hard work and little time for herself, she approached burnout so she took a brief leave and flew out to Colorado to spend several months helping those who had helped her when she had needed them, save their way of life.

She knew that the upcoming meeting at the city council would only be the beginning of what could be a long battle ahead. She would be here at least to get the ball off the ground and started in the courts. The rest would be up to the ranchers who valued the land and the horses which roamed over it as they had for decades.

Jed and Reed rode up to where she sat.

"So you're ready to go to the meeting?"

She nodded, standing up.

"As ready as I'll ever be," she said, "Jason and I worked all afternoon on the TRO for tomorrow."

"I guess tonight is when we'll find out if we need it," Jed said.

"Yeah, I already had the mayor and one of the developers tell me the vote's a done deal and they might be right."

"If so, we're going to fight this," Jed said, "

Reed nodded.

"I've better get going," C.J. said, "I still got to pick up Butterfly at the airport before the meeting."

* * *

Matt and Brody walked out of the police station after their meeting with Hoyt who had read them the riot act about this morning but didn't really mean it. The two men they had caught this morning were singing about their roles in the operation to the detectives right now but Hoyt still shook his head at Matt and Brody as they left his office.

"He's really a hard case," Brody said, "More so than in the days he supervised me."

"I can see where some of that attitude came from," Matt said, "Made me realize I'd been a bit hard on him these years."

Brody ignored him.

"I still think that if we can get some leads on the Begonia Blackmailer, this will turn out to be a red letter day."

"We haven't agreed to take on the Begonia…case."

"We were talking about that vacation you were planning to take," Brody said.

"And I told you that it's off the calendar until I make headway in closing out some of these cases."

"I and the other guys can handle it," Brody said, "By the time you get back, we'll have it all under control."

"That's what scares me."

"I didn't think anything scared you," Brody said, "Well almost anything."

Matt stopped and turned around to face him.

"Why are you pushing this whole vacation thing?"

"Ah, you got my point," Brody said,"You're quick."

"Why are you pushing it?"

"Because you need one," Brody said, "When was your last one?"

Matt sighed.

"Last year," he said.

"There you go then," Brody said, "This would be a great time to take one. Air fares are going down. Not that this is a problem for you."

"No, I have my own fleet of jets," Matt said.

"Perfect," Brody said, "You could fly one of them out to Colorado and help your best friend. It's got to be more relaxing than life in the fast lane here."

* * *

C.J. drove back to Silver Lode from the small airport that was about an hour away. Butterfly sat next to her, looking out the window at the scenery which raced by. She had grown three inches since C.J. had last seen her and her long brown hair now included strands that were pink and blue. That wasn't all that had changed, C.J. noticed. No wonder Chris had her hands full with the teenaged girl.

"So how long are we going to stay at this meeting you've got to be at?"

"It shouldn't be longer than a couple of hours," she said.

"I can't believe I won't be able to see him anymore," Butterfly said, leaning back in her seat, "Aunt Chris is being so unfair."

"Butterfly, he was much too old for you," C.J. said, "You need to go out with boys your own age."

"I don't want to go out with other boys," Butterfly said, "Spike was no boy, he's the coolest guy."

"Spike…?"

"Yeah, his parents didn't want to give him a boring name," Butterfly said, "Awesome isn't it?"

"Chris felt that you and…Spike needed some space. Things were getting way too serious," C.J. said, "So you're spending some time out on a ranch in the beautiful Rockies helping me out on this case."

Butterfly rolled her eyes.

"Why do I have to help you take notes," Butterfly said, "Don't you have paid help to do that?"

"This case is being done pro bono for the ranchers," C.J. said."That means that the law firm involved is covering all the costs."

"You mean you're not getting paid," Butterfly said, "No wonder you need free labor like me."

C.J. looked at the younger woman, who wore lipstick two shades too dark and foundation two shades too light.

"I'm asking you because you have a real eye for details and your penmanship is much better than mine."

Butterfly shrugged but C.J. made out a hint of a smile on her face. She pulled the rover into the parking lot near City Hall where the meeting was being held and saw that there were few empty spaces left in the spacious lot.

As she and Butterfly got out of the car, Jason came walking up to her.

"You got here just in time," he said, "This meeting's just gotten started and it doesn't look very good at all."

C.J. and Butterfly hurried on after Jason into the front entrance of City Hall, wondering what awaited them. They discovered that soon enough.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

I'm sorry for the delay. Between work and the outage here, it's taken some time! Thanks for reading and for the comments! I really appreciate it. Let's hope that this site stays fixed!

* * *

C.J. and Butterfly walked into the packed city council chambers, to find seats. At the front of the room, Parker and members of the council sat on a dais which was arranged in a semicircle. Extra chairs had been placed in the back of the room but even with those, it was standing room only as men, women and children crowded into the building.

Butterfly took in the sight of people surrounding her.

"All this for a bunch of horses?"

"It's not just the mustangs," C.J. said, "It's a way of life."

Jason and Jed walked up to them.

"I got us seats in the front," Jason said, and they walked towards them.

C.J. put her things down and sat, and as she did, she saw Kilroy and the other developers sitting on the other side of the aisle. They didn't look happy to see her.

Jason handed her a folder and she looked through it.

"We might have a chance to read part of the letter," he said, "But they might try to shut us down."

"We'll have to stop them," C.J. said, looking around as more people congregated in the chamber.

Parker pounded the gavel from his seat and gradually the room quieted down as people focused their attention on the front of the room.

"Welcome to the weekly meeting of the city council. Tonight we are here to discuss the proposed conceptual plans for a new ski resort which will be presented by Steve Kilroy. There will also be an opportunity for public comment."

Suddenly, the room came to life again as people shifted in their seats.

"I've got plenty to say," an elderly man stood up, "I've been ranching in the valley for 50 years."

"Yeah, no outsider is going to come in and tell us what to do with our land," a woman said from the audience.

Parker raised his hands to quiet everyone.

"Now hold on there," he said, "You'll all get your turn to speak after Mr. Kilroy does his presentation. After you hear what he has to say, I'm sure that will alleviate some of your concerns."

The crowd rumbled, but the room became quiet again.

"Now without any further ado," Parker said, "I'll let Mr. Kilroy explain his proposed project to the body."

Jason and C.J. looked at each other then sat back to listen.

* * *

Matt and Brody sat in a car at another stakeout. Brody ate another Hoagie which stunk up the car and Matt realized that it was getting harder to tell one stakeout apart from the next.

The phone rang. Matt took the call.

"Hello, this is Matt."

"It's Ginger," she said, "We met the night of the auction."

"Yes we did," he said, "By the Adonis ice sculpture."

"You remember," she said.

"Partly because the office just received the bill for payment on it this morning."

"That doesn't sound fair," she said, "You were just doing your civic duty by going after that purse snatcher."

"I did knock it down and break it into pieces," Matt said, "It's not like it could be put back together."

"Still, that was by far the most exciting auction that organization ever hosted," Ginger said, "They could have covered the cost of the ice sculpture with the entertainment budget."

Matt laughed.

"Any particular reason you're calling?"

"Oh yeah," she said, "The museum is having a special premiere tomorrow night for a new exhibit that's being unveiled. I thought you and your friends might want to attend."

"That sounds tempting," Matt said, "I'll pass the information along."

"I'll leave some tickets for you at the door," she said.

Matt clicked his phone shut. Brody looked at him.

"Don't tell me, it was her."

"'Her' meaning Ginger from the other night?"

Brody nodded.

"She's set her sights on you," he said.

"You say that like it's a bad thing," Matt said, "She seemed very nice the other night."

"That's how it will be, now that she's probably run a background check on you and found out about all your assets," Brody said, "Dating's gotten so much more technical than it was back in the day."

"You've never even met her," Matt said, keeping one eye on the target of the stakeout, this time a warehouse.

"I don't have to," Brody said, "She had that look."

"Let's just drop this and stick to the job at hand, okay?"

* * *

The chambers rocked in absolute chaos. After Kilroy had given his presentation and the city council had praised him for everything from his conceptual design of the ski resort to knowing how to operate a Power Point presentation, Parker had finally opened the topic up for public comment.

Immediately, those in the audience began to line up on opposite sides of the room to speak. Early on, members of the local business chamber had on cue, gone up and lauded the pending arrival of the new ski resort to the area even though it hadn't been approved yet.

"All the people on their Rolodexes," C.J. had commented to Jason, "They pick up the phone, they come running."

But after the fans of the project had finished speaking and sat down, the dozens of those in opposition to the placement of a tourist trap in their valley began to speak at the podium. With each one, the beaming smile which had lit Parker's face dimmed bit by bit. Each time someone finished speaking, the others in the audience would cheer, some while standing on their feet. Then Parker would pound his gavel again to get people to quiet down.

Jed, Reed and the other ranchers had made speeches about how they had worked the land in the valley for years, tending cattle and raising horses. How their corner of the world had escaped the development which had impacted other valleys in the state. How they wanted to keep the land as it was to leave to their children and grandchildren just as it had been left to them. C.J. thought she saw one city councilwoman wipe a tear away but she wasn't sure. The rest of the faces listening to the speeches appeared set in stone.

Jed walked back to where C.J. and Jason were sitting with Butterfly who took careful notes of the proceedings.

"I think it's going very well," he said, before sitting down.

C.J. nodded.

"This turnout is great," she said, "I don't think the council or Parker expected it."

"Hopefully, it will give the undecided vote something to think about," Jed said, "Especially with elections coming up."

C.J. left to line up for a chance to speak to the council. Thea stood in line in front of her.

"Isn't it great how everyone came out to speak against the ski resort," Thea said.

C.J. smiled.

"I think someone's phone tree had something to do with this."

"I activated it," Thea said, "But there's people here who aren't even from the valley."

"I called some people in town," Bonnie said, "Not everyone's in cahoots with the chamber club."

C.J. passed where Kilroy sat with the other developers at their section. The glance he threw her way wasn't as friendly as it had been when she met Kilroy at a barbecue not long after coming to town.

Thea brought down the chambers with her speech about how she and her husband Gordon had settled down to a life of ranching in the valley to raise their family. She shed a tear while she spoke and she wasn't the only one.

When C.J. reached the podium, she looked at the city officials and handed the clerk a stack of documents to pass out to each member of the council sitting in front of her. They flipped through the pages noncommittally, then looked up at her almost in unison with stunned expressions on their faces.

"Yes, that document is what it appears to be," she said, "It will be filed through the courts tomorrow. It's a temporary injunction against any further land development in the valley until a future hearing on this matter is set."

Kilroy swore and pounded his fist on the table. Parker looked like he was cursing under his breath from behind his weakening smile. The rest of the city council members just looked at each other. The audience cheered.

"We were going to wait but then after receiving a declaration from the Flynns and also the Wyatts who told of the methods being used to persuade them to sell their land, we pushed it ahead on the schedule."

Parker stood up.

"This is most improper," he said. "And probably is illegal to boot."

He looked over at the city's attorney for support but the bespectacled young man just shrugged.

One of the council woman spoke up.

"We need some clarification on this matter," she said, "We'll have to adjourn to closed session to discuss this any further."

The crowd stood up and roared in protest.

"You can't make this decision away from the public and take it behind closed doors," a man said.

C.J. tapped on the microphone.

"Excuse me, but I believe that the action that you're proposing might be in violation of state law," she said, "At any point, this is a courtesy notice of what's going to take place tomorrow. "

Parker called for order.

"That is for us to determine," he said, "We will adjourn the current proceedings and call for a special meeting in the next several days to issue a response."

Everyone stood up to leave the building. Kilroy and his partners walked up to speak with Parker and several other council members.

C.J. walked back to where Butterfly was sitting.

"We'd better get going," she said, "the meeting's over."

"Are they always this exciting, a bunch of adults arguing?"

C.J. smiled.

"No sometimes, they're even better," she said, "People start throwing things."

"That really happens," Butterfly said, "No way."

Jason walked up to them.

"A group of us are meeting at the diner to plan our next move," he said, "We'd better explain to them that the battle's just beginning."

C.J. nodded as she gathered her things.

* * *

Matt walked off the elevator into his lobby and saw his uncle sitting by the bar.

"What's up," he said.

"Oh nothing," Roy said, "I ran those names through this wonderful thing called the internet but I don't think the sites that came up involve the same individuals."

"Have I gotten any calls?"

"You always get calls," Roy said, "Did she call…no but a woman named Ginger called to get your phone number."

"I talked with her and she's invited us all to a premiere art exhibit at the museum where she works."

"I think it would be a great cultural experience," Roy said, "I'll ask Sophie if she has a younger sister and we can go together."

"No thanks, Uncle Roy," Matt said, raising his hand, "I can handle my own social networking."

He sat down at the bar with his uncle after pouring himself some scotch.

"Tough day at work," Roy asked.

"I'm beginning to mix up my stakeouts," Matt said, "Brody keeps trying to get me to take a vacation."

Roy looked at his nephew carefully.

"Do you think you need one?"

Matt shrugged.

"Sometimes," he said, "The caseload's not getting any smaller even with hiring extra investigators."

"It did pile up when you and C.J. were gone all those months," Roy said.

"I know. Which is why I have been busting my butt to get it back to where I could handle it."

"Then take a vacation," Roy said, "Why don't you go out to the ranch where C.J.'s at and help her out on her case?"

"She said she didn't need an investigator," Matt said.

"She said that because she didn't want you to feel obligated to drop all your work and fly out," Roy said, "But I think she would appreciate it if you did come out and visit."

"Maybe when things settle down around here," Matt said, "It would be nice to get away and relax."

* * *

The diner had just enough tables to accommodate the several dozen people who appeared there after the adjournment of the meeting to discuss what had happened. The waitress brought them pitchers of ice tea and lemonade to start them out.

"Did we win back there," Bonnie asked as she sat next to Jed.

"I think we got a stay," C.J. said, "but probably only for several days."

"Did you see how ticked off those developers were," Bonnie said, "And Parker too. He looked like he was going to explode."

"I don't trust those developers at all," Thea said, "I have a feeling they aren't going to take this setback very lightly."

"We've got them where we want them," Jason said.

C.J. sat with Jason and Butterfly in a booth saved by Maggie, the paralegal who was working with them.

"Do you want anything to eat Butterfly," she said, "They've got great burgers."

Butterfly put down her notebook on the table and picked up a menu.

"Any chili cheeseburgers?"

C.J. smiled.

"Sure," she said, "I'll have one too."

"We've got to work on what's going to happen after we file the legal papers tomorrow," Jason said, "I suspect their attorneys will throw a lot of paper our way in response."

"That's to be expected," she said, "What's going to make or break us is what the judge decides."

"That's why we have to have our ducks in a row in federal court," Jason said, "We'll do our part on this end and the team up in Denver can handle that end."

"I can help," C.J. said, "I'm licensed in federal court. You're licensed here so you should be the leg man on this end."

"Okay, that will work," Jason said, "We make a great team, don't we?"

C.J. nodded.

"Yes we do," she said, "And with the ranchers, we're going to win this battle."

They clinked their glasses.

* * *

A bartender poured the vodka and handed it to Kilroy who walked back to a booth where two other men were sitting.

"The injunction's not worth the paper it's printed on," one of the men assured him.

Kilroy pounded his glass on the table, startling the other men.

"If the judge grants them a permanent one, it could shut down this project for good," he said, "And I've funneled a lot of money into it already."

"What about your lawyers?"

"They say we have to prepare for the permanent hearing and raise a compelling enough argument for the judge to decide in our favor and throw the injunction out."

"And if that doesn't work?"

Kilroy sipped his vodka and looked back at them.

"Then we have to use other methods to stop them in their tracks," he said, "No one and I mean no one must interfere with the success of this project."

"Got you boss."

"In fact, let's not wait until that hearing to get the ball rolling back in our court."

* * *

Matt finished lifting weights and wiped the sweat off his forehead with a towel. He had hoped that working out in his gym would help relieve some of the stress that his business was causing him. Not that he didn't enjoy the career he had built for himself, he loved it but he felt with so many cases, he had less time to commit to each one in the personalized style that he had built his reputation on during the past few years.

Roy wandered in with a glass of juice and handed it to Matt, who gulped it down.

"Do you feel better," Roy said, "You were at it for over an hour."

"I really thought that hiring those extra four ex-cops would help but I think I'm just going to have to stop taking new cases until I catch up."

Roy looked at him.

"Is this what you really want to do?"

Matt looked up in surprise.

"My work," he said, "Of course it is. What kind of question is that?"

"I've never seen you this tense about it," Roy said, "I've seen it consume you in other ways but that's not the same thing."

Matt paused.

"I still love the investigating part, the never knowing what the day's going to be like part," Matt said, "or the night for that matter…"

"But…"

"I'm not sure I'm cut out for the office part of it," he said, "And with C.J. building a new life for herself in Texas and Chris working for Houston Enterprises out there as well, I haven't been able to find anyone who has their talents."

"And their dedication," Roy finished.

"They helped me build the agency to what it is today."

"What's really bothering you Matlock," Roy said, "This office work or the fact that you're in L.A. and they're not?"

That stopped Matt in his tracks.

"I miss them," he said, "I miss the days we worked together especially the earliest days."

"So what do you plan to do about it?"

Matt paused for a while to sort out the thoughts which were racing through his head.

"I plan to try to reduce my caseload," he said, leaving the gym.

Roy watched him go and shook his head.

Matt walked out onto the helipad and stood at its edge looking out over the lights of L.A. He and C.J. both separately came out here to collect their thoughts and sort through their feelings when the need arose and most of the time it helped. He had poured himself some more scotch and had watched the activity which defined the night life in the vibrant city suddenly wishing he were miles away.

He pulled out his cell phone and punched some buttons. Someone standing thousands of miles away picked it up.

"Hi, Houston is that you?"

"Yes it is," he said, "I'm standing on the helipad looking at the night sky."

"I can picture you doing that," C.J. said, "How are things going there?"

He sighed.

"I've been very busy," he said, "Those new hires are a great boost to business but I'm still working through some cases."

"The price of success," she said.

"How are things going in Colorado?"

"Very well," she said, "Jason and I addressed a packed city council meeting today and told them about the injunction."

"How'd they take the news?"

She laughed.

"Not very well," she said, "But you should have seen all the residents, not just the ranchers, who came out and spoke against the project. It was truly inspiring. Even Butterfly was impressed."

"Butterfly's spending time out with you?"

"Chris sent her out to chill out after the breakup of her first big romance," C.J. said, "She was a big help tonight."

"So you're doing fine without an investigator," Matt said.

"Yes….but I really do miss you," she said, "So even if you decide you need a break from your work, it'd be great to see you again."

"I miss you too," Matt said, "It's not the same without you."

"I'm not staying away from L.A. to stay away from you," she said.

"I know that," he said, "And I'm really proud of you for what you've accomplished."

"Thank you," she said, smiling on the other end as she walked out into the corner of the parking lot at City Hall where she had parked her car.

"I'll see what I can do with this caseload…"

"Oh wait, Houston, I'm going to have to get back to you."

She hung up. He clicked off his phone and looked at it.

* * *

C.J. and Butterfly had walked to the rover while she was still talking to Matt on the phone. But Butterfly had cried out and pointed at the windshield. It had been cracked by a rock which had been wrapped in a copy of the letter that C.J. had presented to the city council at the meeting. Both rested on the hood of the car.

"Damn," C.J. said, as she looked at the damage done to the windshield. She looked around to see if anyone else was around but the lot was quiet. Jed and Bonnie finally caught up with them.

"What happened," he asked when he saw their facial expressions.

"Some jerk smashed the windshield with a rock," Butterfly said, unwrapping some gum and sticking it in her mouth.

He looked at the damage.

"I knew this might happen," Jed said, "Those developers were mighty pissed off that their project got shut down."

"We don't know it's even them," C.J. said, "They had copies of the letter but so did members of the city council and Parker."

"It doesn't matter," Jed said, "Somebody's really upset at how this meeting went down and they're blaming it on you. I doubt any other cars got hit in this lot."

"Maybe they got lucky," she said.

"Maybe they've been following you and know the make of your vehicle."

C.J. sighed.

"I didn't even see it at first because I was on the phone with Houston."

"What did he think of it?"

"I didn't tell him," C.J. said, "No point in worrying him. He's got enough to keep him busy with his business in L.A."

"You've got to report it to the sheriff," Jed said.

"He'll just tell me I shouldn't worry my sweet little head about it," C.J. said, "that it was a prank by kids."

"We need to call him anyway," Jed said.

"Come on," Bonnie said, "Let's go back and wait in the store."

* * *

Matt and Brody drove down the highway back out to the warehouse which they had left hours earlier. After C.J. had hung up on him, Matt had discovered a phone call from his partner on call-waiting. He picked it up and Brody told him he had gotten a tip about a shipment being made at the warehouse.

"I guess they were too busy to show up this afternoon," Brody said, "So it's coming in tonight."

"It could be our client's jewelry," Matt said, turning off the highway.

"Sounds like it could be a huge shipment of stolen jewelry."

"I hope so," Matt said, "I would love to finally close this case out."

"Did I interrupt something with my phone call," Brody said.

Matt shook his head.

"I just gave C.J. a call to see how she was doing," he said.

"And what did she tell you?"

Matt drove down a darkened side street.

"She's doing fine," he said, "She and that lawyer she's been working with won a key victory today."

"That's really great," Brody said, "I'm happy for her."

Matt raised his brow at the other man's praise.

"Don't be surprised," Brody said, "I always thought she was too good to have ever hung out with you."

"Which makes her better than you," Matt said, "That I can agree with."

Brody chuckled.

"Did she ask you to come out to Colorado?"

"She doesn't need an investigator," he said.

"You didn't answer my question."

"She said if I had a break in my work and I said I would clear some more cases and then…she said she had to go and hung up."

"That's what you get for keeping a lady waiting," Brody said as they pulled into the parking lot by the warehouse. Matt parked the car underneath a tree and they sat down to wait.

* * *

"I told you," C.J. said, as she paced outside by her car.

"Now hold on," Jed said, "The point was to get the written report taken. It doesn't matter what Sheriff Daniels says."

"He said it was kids," C.J. said, "Maybe he's right."

"Grownups blame everything on kids," Butterfly grumbled as she started listening to her ipod.

"These weren't kids," Jed said, "These were probably people upset about the bomb that you and Jason dropped at the meeting tonight."

"It could have been anybody," C.J. said, "That's one thing I've learned in my experiences."

"It's not going to stop the filing of the temporary papers and the permanent injunction next week in Denver," she said.

Jed crossed his arms.

"This could get rough," he said, "We're going to have to prepare for that."

"We have to do this regardless of how rough it gets," C.J. said, "This is very important to many people."

"And not just to those who are fighting against this project," Jed said.

* * *

From some distance away, someone sitting in a car watched them then started to make a phone call.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4---Here's another chapter of this story. Hope you enjoy it and thanks for your comments!

* * *

He saw her sitting in a chair on the balcony of the beach house and went out to meet her, the woman wearing a nice white dress which accented her tanned skin. She wore her curly dark hair back off of her face and nursed a soft drink. Being married didn't mean he stopped checking out attractive women who crossed his line of vision, he reminded himself. But all he did was look.

"Hey is this seat taken," he said.

She looked up at him and shook her head so he sat down.

"I saw you talking with some of the other guests, looking like you were having a good time."

She shrugged.

"They're mostly Houston's friends," she said, "I'm from out of town."

"You came in for his birthday?"

"Yeah," she said, "My flight was late taking off so I got here just an hour ago. It's been a long day."

He studied her face, noticing she did look tired.

"So how do you know the birthday boy?"

"I'm a very good friend of his who used to work with him out here," she said, "I live in Houston now."

His face lit up.

"Oh yeah, you must be the legendary C.J. Parsons," he said, "My predecessor."

"And you must be….Brody," she said, smiling, "I heard you have a thing for anchovies. So do I."

"Matt's a little sensitive about that," Brody said, "But he hasn't banished them from stakeouts yet."

C.J. laughed.

"He must think you're really good," she said.

"So do I," Brody said, "Not that I could be anywhere but in your shadow."

She raised her brow.

"You _are_ good," she said, "You should do just fine working with him."

"And you, look lovely," Brody said, "If I weren't married and I knew my wife wouldn't kill me, you're the kind of woman I could see myself spending more time with."

She cocked her head but she smiled.

"You don't even know me," C.J. said.

"I've heard a lot about you from our mutual employer," Brody said, "not that you work for him any longer of course."

"It's been a while since I've been to L.A.," she said, "My career takes me different places but seldom here."

"He mentioned that too," Brody said, "I know a lot about you."

She looked at him a moment, then nodded.

"You've read the stories," she said, "About what I went through, what we both went through over a year ago."

He nodded.

"So you think you know everything there is to know about me."

"Well...," he said, feeling a bit like he was on the witness stand.

Her smile dimmed and she looked away.

"Then you don't know me," she said, standing up, "Excuse me."

"Wait…" he stood up to grab her arm.

* * *

C.J. woke up in her cabin, to see that quietness met her and a stream of moonlight came through her window and onto her comforter. She saw that the clock read 2 a.m. so she pulled her comforter closer around her and lay back down to go to sleep. She tried hard to recapture her dream but it had faded. At least her nightmares had receded by now. She hadn't had one since the night of the party.

She had met Matt's new partner that night when Matt had celebrated his birthday at his beach house. It had been an all day affair, most of which had been spent on the spacious piece of sand and surf in front of his property. After the sun set, the guests had retreated to his house for cocktails and a barbecue, Texas style of course. At some point, C.J. had arrived in a taxi from the airport after her flight had been delayed only to see that Matt had left to go on an errand to pick up more steaks and chicken. She had been engrossed in conversation with some of the guests when he returned.

She enjoyed parties especially smaller, intimate ones with close friends but she noticed that she knew few of the guests who attended this party. Oh, she of course knew his closer friends like Capt. Michael Hoyt who brought his wife and daughter along with some freshly made cobbler and pies. She knew some of the receptionists who worked at his office building who had brought their boyfriends and husbands to the bash. But many of the people, she had never even met and when she heard some of the names during introductions, she was finally able to match unfamiliar faces with names Matt had casually mentioned during their phone calls.

And she also met Brody.

Sighing, she turned and tried to get to sleep. Soon enough, the sun would rise and a hungry teenager would wake up to her first morning in "the sticks" as she called it wondering about breakfast. Then a long day riding across the ranch awaited both of them after she heard from Jason about the filing of the temporary injunction papers.

She gave up on sleeping and got out of bed to go to the kitchen.

* * *

Matt kicked off his sheets and got out of bed. He had gotten in late that night, actually early in the morning after a fruitless stakeout to try to catch a jewel thief fencing his goods at an empty warehouse. He wondered if Brody had dragged him out there on some false pretence to get him to spill about his vacation plans. When he had returned, sleep had eluded him even after he took a shower and watched television for a while. He found himself thinking back to the night of his birthday party.

He had walked into the door carrying bags of meat to barbecue so his guests wouldn't go hungry and saw C.J. in a white dress that hugged her figure standing and talking to some of his friends as if they were hers too. She listened and laughed at their stories and they did hers. He hadn't seen her arrive, hadn't known she was coming because during their last phone conversation, her trip to L.A. didn't seem too promising due to last minute plans.

Hoyt had then called him out to the backyard to put out a small fire that broke out while barbecuing. Then some time later when he returned to his living room, she was gone.

He walked into the kitchen and opened the refrigerator. He looked and found a quart of milk, to heat up to help him sleep, which he needed to prepare him for his morning, afternoon and early evening stakeouts before he headed off to where Ginger worked to attend the premiere of the new art exhibit.

His phone rang and he nearly let the machine pick it up but found himself reaching for the phone.

"Hello," he said, stifling a yawn.

"Hi Houston, did I wake you" she said.

"C.J., is that you," he said, "Is there anything wrong?"

She paused and his hairs on the back his neck stood up.

"No…No I just had a hard time sleeping after the excitement of last night's meeting," she said, "How are things on your end?"

"Great, really great," Matt said, "We spent six hours in a car staking out a warehouse where a jewel thief pulled a no-show."

"Was it Brody's idea?"

Matt chuckled.

"His usually reliable source of information was wrong for once."

She didn't laugh.

"At least you're home safe," she said, "That's what's important."

He switched the phone to his other ear.

"Are you sure everything's all right in Colorado?"

"Yeah…though I'll feel better when the TRO's filed tomorrow and we can focus on the hearing at the end of next week."

"That will stop the project," Matt said.

"Most likely, because between the time and cost of appealing it, the developers will probably decide to cut their losses and seek out another location."

"Then the battle will be over," Matt said.

"Hopefully," she said, "That's the plan."

"Sounds like a good one," he said.

Then silence slipped between them.

"I better let you go," she said, "Good night."

"You mean good morning," he said, "You too."

* * *

Matt clicked off the phone and looked at it a moment, before putting it down. He mixed some cinnamon in his warm milk as his father had done when he was a child and sipped it. It began to work its magic by the time he half-finished it. Still, his mind wandered as it often did lately when he thought about the direction that his agency had moved in since he had returned to L.A. after months away.

Luckily, he hadn't lost many of his clients but he realized the work he needed to do to restore its hard-built reputation and set to work almost immediately. Within several days, he fell back into the life as if he had never left. He interviewed and hired some of the police officers who had retired from the LAPD, who had received Hoyt's highest recommendations. And they lived up to the hype, being solid producers who never complained about the late night hours and weekends away from their families. After all, their careers in law enforcement had exacted similar sacrifices and he paid much better.

But even as his agency recovered from his months of neglect, he realized that he spent more time trying to cross out case numbers from a ledger than he did on working through each individual assignment. He missed the days when his agency practiced a more personal touch for his clients. It often led to him bringing the cases home with him at the end of the day, which led to many sleepless nights but heartwarming gratification when the cases were concluded. After solving cases, he and C.J. often went out and celebrated with dinner, first at Mama Novelli's restaurant but then after she left town to live with her family, at an assortment of eateries.

He finished his warm milk and went back to bed, but sleep took its time coming.

* * *

The sunlight awoke C.J. from her night of tossing and turning and she heard footsteps outside her bedroom so she got up and pulling on her robe, walked out into the kitchen. Butterfly sat at the table spooning cereal in her mouth. She turned around when she saw C.J. arrive.

"I didn't know if you were ever getting up so I just helped myself to some cereal," she said.

"I could make some eggs if you liked," C.J. said, reaching into the cabinet to get some coffee to brew.

"Not necessary," Butterfly said, "I can handle my own breakfast and this cereal…isn't so bad once you eat a couple bites of it."

C.J. picked up the box.

"It was here when I arrived," she said, "I haven't had much time to get to town to get more."

Butterfly shrugged.

"It's fine," she said, "Don't worry about it or me."

C.J. looked at the teenaged girl who was so different than the younger girl she remembered.

"But it's our job to worry about you, Butterfly," C.J. said, sitting at the table and pouring cereal and milk into a bowl for herself.

"You and Chris aren't my parents," Butterfly said, frowning.

"No we're not," C.J. said, "But we both care a lot about you and we're worried about you."

"There's nothing to worry about," Butterfly said, "Especially since I'm not allowed to hang out with anyone without a babysitter."

"Spike was way too old for you," C.J. said, "I know you're in a hurry to grow up and prove that you're grown up but you're still a young girl."

"I'm not a baby," Butterfly said, putting down her spoon.

"You're still a young girl, and you should have time to enjoy being just that," C.J. said, "And Chris and I want to make sure you have that chance."

"Why can't I have that and still see Spike?"

C.J. paused.

"Because Chris said you can't and you need to listen to her," she said, "She only did it because she cares so much about you."

"She won't when it arrives," Butterfly mumbled.

"What do you mean, it," C.J. said and then she understood.

"'It' meaning baby," Butterfly said, "You do know that she's knocked up."

C.J. nodded, smiling.

"I'd heard about it," she said, "And I know Chris and Dan are very excited but it doesn't mean they care about or love you any less or that this will change how they feel about you."

"'Course it will."

"Do you really believe that or are you just scared that you don't know what's going to happen?"

Butterfly looked like she was thinking about it.

"Both…maybe," she said, "Still it would be nice to have a sister."

"I know you miss your sister a lot," C.J. said, "But you're going to have a chance to be a big sister to someone just like she was to you."

"I guess," Butterfly said, but smiled.

"So are you up for a day of riding," C.J. asked getting up to pour herself some coffee.

Butterfly narrowed her eyes.

"They do have horses for beginners here, don't they?"

C.J. smiled.

"Jed thinks you'll do great with Sangria," she said, "She's a bit old, but she's tough and she's good at looking out for others whether they're horse or people. Besides you have great hands, you'll do just fine."

Butterfly nodded and finished her cereal.

"I just have to call Jason and make sure he's fine with the paperwork and we'll meet up with Jed in the barn and get going."

* * *

Jed walked into the kitchen where Thea sat at the table eating a plate of eggs and reading a newspaper.

"Would you like anything," she said when she saw him.

"No thanks," he said, "Bonnie made sure I had a huge plate of eggs and hash browns before I left."

"So you'll meet up with C.J. and Butterfly in the barn?"

"Yeah, C.J.'s hoping that keeping Butterfly busy will keep her mind off of her boyfriend."

"It might but not for long," Thea said, "Love and romance are very serious issues for a girl Butterfly's age."

"She'll have plenty of time for more of that," Jed said, "She's only a young girl and there's men out there who prey on that."

Thea smiled at Jed, thinking you could take the man out of law enforcement but not vice versa.

"She'll be fine out there with Sangria taking care of her," Thea said, sipping her coffee.

"We got the sheriff's report taken on the rover," Jed said, "So it should be no problem getting insurance to pay for the damage."

"I don't give a damn about who pays for it," Thea said, "Whoever did that could have hurt someone."

"Well, the sheriff said it's likely a bunch of kids."

"Convenient, considering everyone knows he's in Parker's back pocket," she said, "How bad do you think this could get?"

"I don't know," Jed said, "But it's not very promising so far if a cracked windshield is only the beginning."

* * *

Matt and Brody were sitting in the car, conducting yet another stakeout in yet another location in the underbelly of L.A. Matt with his binoculars in hand and Brody with his beloved Hoagies right next to him. While looking through zoom lens at yet another quiet structure, Matt was beginning to feel like he was in the middle of a bad rendition of the film, _Groundhog Day._

"You look tired," Brody said, "Busy social life keeping you up late?"

Matt just looked at him.

"Okay, I heard that our missing in action jewel thief might actually be fencing his merchandise here."

"That's what you said about the warehouse.'

"Hey, maybe he called it an early night," Brody said, "or the middleman didn't show."

"It looks just as quiet here," Matt said, looking at the boarded up property which had housed a pawn shop, one of many on the side street.

"That shop closed down months ago,' Brody said, "Shame too. In these current economic times, business should be booming."

The building looked quiet.

"It doesn't look like business is booming there now," Matt said, "Even on the black market today."

Brody picked up one of his sandwiches and unwrapped it. Matt steeled himself for the strong smell but noticed that at least for today, Brody kept the anchovies away.

"Oh the wife wants me to stop eating so many of them," he said, "Or she'll stop kissing me when I get home."

Matt suppressed a laugh.

"Smart woman," he said.

"So you going to hit it off with Ginger tonight at the museum get-together?"

Matt put down his binoculars.

"She gave us an open invite to the event," he said, "If you and your wife want to attend, you're welcome."

"My wife says I spend too much time away from the house," Brody said, "She's putting her foot down again."

"My uncle is taking Sophia to the event," Matt said, "And Ginger seems like a very nice woman."

"So you said," Brody said, "Just watch yourself and your billions around her."

"Millions," Matt corrected, "And she might be wealthier than I am. It's possible for a woman to become wealthy in her own right."

"True, but maybe you should check her out before you agree to go out with her."

"Why all this distrust anyway," Matt said, "How'd you ever wind up getting married?"

"We had to," Brody said, "We jumped the gun so to speak."

"Oh," Matt said.

"Not that I regret getting married," Brody said, "I mean the wife and the kids are great but still..."

"I saw you flirting with my former partner at my party," Matt said.

"Don't worry, as you know, she cut me to the quick and put me in my place real fast," Brody said, "Classy lady but definitely not interested."

"It's not personal," Matt said, "She's just been going through a lot for a while."

"I know," Brody said, "And when I found out what happened that day before she got there, I felt badly about my behavior."

"I'm not too proud of my own," Matt said.

Brody put his Hoagie down.

"Why, what did you do?"

Matt looked up and saw the man leaving the shuttered shop.

"Look, there he goes."

The man darted his head back and forth looking down the street and then headed toward an alley.

"Maybe he's just getting a bite to eat," Brody said.

"Maybe he's meeting his contact in the alley," Matt said, opening the car door.

Both of them got out of the car and prepared to follow the man on foot, staying some distance behind him.

"Do you think he's got the jewels?"

"I doubt it," Matt said, "Too risky. He might give the buyer a location to find them."

They saw the man walk into the alley, and then stop to wait for someone. Matt and Brody crept towards the end of the alley and hid behind a large dumpster.

"At least now he can't smell us coming," Matt said.

"Real funny."

They looked up to see a man walking up to their guy.

* * *

C.J. looked back to see how Butterfly was handling Sangria as they rode with Jed and Reed across the ranch. Also riding with them was Carter who looked like a younger version of his brother, Reed. To her relief, she saw that Sangria appeared patient with the novice rider on her back and that Carter rode alongside her tossing out helpful tips.

"Keep your hands soft on the reins," Carter said, "You're doing very good."

On the other hand, C.J. thought, Chris had sent Butterfly to the ranch to get her away from older guys so maybe she should watch this carefully.

"How old is Carter," C.J. asked Reed.

"He'll be 16, next month," Reed said, also noticing the pair.

So he just looked older. Still, she intended to keep an eye on the young man. After all, she had once been 14 herself, the age Butterfly was now and that's what scared her.

"Look…"

C.J. looked up at the sound of Jed's voice and saw the mustangs. Several females and their young foals eating grass on the next meadow. They reined in their horses to watch the small group.

"So these aren't regular horses," Butterfly said.

"They're mustangs, descended from horses that were once trained but then became wild again," Jed said, "Coming full circle."

"They don't look much different," she said.

"You can't see the part that's different right away," C.J. said.

"Are there like any guy mustangs?"

"Sure," C.J. said, "Not as many because stallions can't live near one another but there's several in these parts including Diablo Del Sol."

"Who's he?"

"He's a long-time fixture in this valley," Jed said, "Some people don't think he really exists because he only shows himself to those he wants to see him."

"Have you seen him," Butterfly asked.

C.J. shook her head.

"No, I heard him one night and it's something I'll never forget," C.J. said, "When I was here the first time. But Houston saw him when he was riding up to help Jed and I at the cabin. He said that Diablo saved his life."

Butterfly nodded thoughtfully.

"I hope I get to see him," she said.

"You might just do that," Jed said, "But you can never tell. I saw him a couple times myself."

They looked across the meadow to see the two mares looking back at them. But they stayed there with their foals eating grass and didn't run.

* * *

Matt and Brody watched the men talking and then one of them pulled something out of his pocket. Brody reached for his camera to film the transaction but his foot stepped backward on top of a discarded aluminum can making noise. The two men looked up and saw them.

"Damn," Brody said.

The men took off and Matt took off after them, with Brody on his heels. The two men split up after they left the alley, leaving the two in pursuit having to choose which way to go. Matt took off after the one they had seen leave the pawn shop and both of them weaved through traffic until they hit the other side of the street. Matt tried to keep up with the guy but it appeared as if the man had grown wings on his feet and he pulled away. Matt tried to turn the corner when he did and tripped over a piece of junk lying on the sidewalk, falling to the ground and rolling over.

When he looked back, the man was nowhere to be seen and several pedestrians were looking down at him in curiosity. Brody's face then appeared and his partner pulled him on his feet.

"Are you okay," Brody said.

Matt brushed himself off but found his shoulder throbbing, one that had served once as the final resting spot for a bullet.

"What happened to the other guy?"

"He jammed out of there," Brody said, "I think he is probably on his way back to his boss."

Matt tried to move his shoulder around and sighed.

"Hey do you need some ice on that," Brody said, "Some morphine?"

Matt glared at him.

"It'll be fine," he said, "Old battle wound."

They both walked back to the car.

"This field work does get tougher as you get older," Brody said.

"I'm not as old as you are," Matt said.

"True, but it's not necessarily the years, it's the mileage."

Matt cocked his head.

"Maybe you have me there," he said.

They reached the car which fortunately still rested where it had been parked.

"Look Matt, maybe you should take it easy the rest of the day, rest the shoulder so you'll be ready for the art museum event tonight."

Matt started the car and the engine turned over.

"I…We've got too much work to do," he said, "The day's still too young."

* * *

The group of them headed into the kitchen at the ranch house for some lunch. Thea sat at the table, reading through some papers.

"You got a call from Jason," Thea said, "He's back in Silver Lode. There's a huge crowd there by City Hall. Maybe you and Butterfly better get on down there to find out what's up."

"Let's go," Butterfly said, "I want to see what's going on."

C.J. looked at Jed and she pulled out her phone.

"Hi, this is Jason, C.J. is that you?"

"Yeah, we just got back from some surveying of some mustang pairs this morning. What's up?"

She heard noise from a crowd in the background.

"You'd better get on down here," Jonathon said, "Parker's going to make an announcement in about 40 minutes."

"We'll be right there," C.J. said and as she clicked off her phone, she wondered what the hell had happened now.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5--The latest installment is done. I hope you like it and thanks for the comments.

* * *

C.J. pulled the rover up in the parking lot next to City Hall close to where a large crowd of people had congregated around the building, some of them holding signs.

Bonnie saw them drive up and came running up to the car with Jason and Maggie just behind her.

"Mayor Parker's here with that developer, Steve Kilroy, and they're getting ready to make some sort of announcement."

C.J. got out of the car.

"Can they do that," she asked Jason.

"He can make an announcement but not speak on behalf of the city council."

"What's he going to say," Butterfly said, looking around at all the people.

"I don't know Butterfly," C.J. said, "But I doubt it's good news for us."

"Look, the temporary injunctive papers have been filed on the Flynn place and the Wyatt sale's being looked at," Jason said, "We need to get in touch with them to see if the developers used the same tactics to get them to sell that they've tried with the Flynns."

"Yeah, they'll still have the Wyatt land regardless," C.J. said, "But we can find out the tactics that were used to check for a pattern."

"Speaking of tactics, we heard about your car," Maggie said.

C.J. shrugged.

"Sheriff told us it was kids."

"Do you believe him?"

"No, I don't but we have no proof otherwise," C.J. said, "And they're just trying to scare us off of this fight."

"It's not going to work," Jason said, "And if we have to go for the next step in Denver, we'll just do it."

"I have a feeling that is what we're going to have to do, Jason."

C.J. looked and saw Butterfly talking to Carter in front of the building but both of them had turned to look at the men who passed them, setting up television cameras.

"The press is here," C.J. said, "What's going on?"

"I guess we're going to find out," Jason said as they walked back to where Butterfly and Carter were standing near the crowd.

* * *

Matt placed the icepack on his shoulder and winced.

"Your body really does betray you when it starts getting old," Roy said, walking into the living room area of the penthouse suite, "Every injury no matter how minor comes back like an old ghost."

Matt raised his good hand.

"I get the picture," he said, "But I'm not that old. It's just that this shoulder didn't like getting shot at and won't let me forget it."

Roy nodded.

"Ah that," he said, "We've all been there."

"Brody had to finish out the last stakeout by himself," Matt said, "I don't know if I trust him with the car."

"Brody's a good man underneath his character mannerisms," Roy said, "Hoyt said he was an excellent cop both on the street and in investigations."

"I know and I like the guy," Matt said, "He just gets impulsive at times."

Roy raised a brow.

"Maybe I do too," Matt said, "But I don't make comments out of the blue or ask questions just to get under the skin of people unless it's part of the job."

"I see," Roy said, nodding, "Brody has clearly mastered that skill. Where did he probe this time?"

"He started pushing me to take a vacation, then he narrowed it down to Colorado."

"Where C.J.'s doing her pro bono work for Jonathon's family," Roy said.

Matt nodded.

"Maybe he's right," Roy said, "Maybe you do need a vacation and the Rockies are beautiful this time of year."

"I'm sure they are, Uncle Roy but like I said, the work's piling up here."

Roy waved his hand.

"It will always pile up Matlock," he said, "It's called the price of success. You've heard the phrase."

Matt scratched his head.

"Yeah I have, someone told me the same thing last night."

"There you go," Roy said, "You could force yourself to work through this caseload and what will happen? You'll get more cases to build it back again. Or you could take a break and let the men you hired help you and the worst thing that will happen, is that it still might be here when you get back."

Matt paused.

"It's not that simple," he said.

"Life seldom is," Roy said, "Especially concerning you and C.J."

Matt narrowed his eyes at his uncle.

"What are you talking about," he said, "I'm talking about whether or not I can take a vacation."

"Are you?"

"Of course," Matt said, "What does that have to do with C.J.?"

"She needs your help, she asked for it and you're still sitting around here worrying about your caseload which will always be there over someone who may not be."

"She's only a couple of states away."

"She's further away than that," Roy said, "Something I think that you do know."

"She just told me she didn't need an investigator," Matt said.

"That's not what I'm talking about," Roy said, "I'm talking about needing something else."

Matt sighed.

"Did she tell you that?"

"I think she told you that," Roy said, "The question is whether or not you heard it."

* * *

C.J. and Jason stood in front of the still growing crowd in front of City Hall as Parker, Kilroy and several other developers walked up to the top step which led into the building. The cameras clicked and the crowd quieted down.

"Greetings my fellow residents of Silver Lode and the surrounding area, I'm Mayor Cal Parker and this is developer Steve Kilroy and his partners. These visionary businessmen were planning on bringing economic security and even prosperity that would have put our town on the map. A brand new ski resort that would rival any other in this or any other state and would have brought glory to this town. With divine providence, they will still have that opportunity."

Kilroy smiled broadly at the audience. A chorus of boos began to sound from the back of the audience. Parker waved his hands to quiet them but they ignored him.

"Now now, this project would have lifted this town's status in Colorado and indeed the Rockies considerably but this morning, some outsiders who have been manipulating the obviously impressionable land owners from the valley filed an order for a temporary injunction against this project. It was preliminary granted by a rather misguided judge based solely on politics which means that Mr. Kilroy and his partners can't continue negotiating to purchase properties needed for this vital revenue producing project."

The boos in the crowd grew louder, threatening to drown Parker out. Several residents raised signs saying "Save our Mustangs" and "No Aspen here".

"So now the town of Silver Lode might be forced to spend its own money to assist in this fight. Our attorney will be conducting a closed session meeting with the city council tomorrow and we will issue our decision publicly once it's been made."

"Wait a minute, why is the Silver Lode City Council going to authorize paying one dime to finance a developer's fight," Bonnie said, shaking her head in disgust.

Parker stepped down and Kilroy stepped up to the microphone.

"Thank you Mayor Parker for your generous offer and thank you for allowing me to speak in this venue. We came to this town bringing our dream and our money to build something that Silver Lode would truly be proud of, a state-of-the-art ski resort which would have contributed greatly to the tax base of this depressed region."

"Depressed," Jed said, "Who is he kidding?"

"But as Mayor Parker said, some malcontents standing in the way of progress have gone to court to try to block the American dream and my partners and I are going to take the necessary steps to stop that so that you, the town's residents can have the American dream. With the revenue that comes in not just for the resort but your own local businesses, you can build an infrastructure that you can truly be proud of and put your town on the lips of the movers and shakers in this country. Thank you for your time."

The booing outnumbered the five or six people who applauded his speech. The two men moved down the steps and were swarmed by the television cameras as reporters interviewed them.

C.J. stood with Jason and Maggie.

"Media stunt," Jason said, "They know that they're going to have a tough time in court against us so they're trying their case in the court of public opinion."

"We've got our work to do too," C.J. said, "And not much time to do it before the hearing in Denver."

"I'm working on the forms," Maggie said, "They should be ready in more than enough time."

"Thanks," C.J. said, "You've been a huge help to us."

Maggie smiled.

"This is beautiful country and I love horses," she said, "I want to see it stay that way."

"So do we," C.J. said.

Butterfly came up to her.

"Reed wants to know if he can take Carter and me to the diner."

C.J. nodded.

"You have to be back at the ranch by ten," she said. "No later."

Butterfly rolled her eyes but ran back happily to Carter and his brother.

"I don't know whether to be happy she's made a friend or concerned that it's a guy."

Maggie laughed.

"You're saying that guys and girls can't be friends?"

"No…of course they can, but it can get really complicated especially at her age," C.J. said, "I think guys make great friends. I know that from experience."

"That investigator you were going to hire," Jason said, "The one from L.A."

"Yeah, the one who's trying to lift his business out from under a pile of cases," she said, "But he's been my best friend for years, since we were younger."

"And you've stayed, just friends?"

C.J. nodded.

"Best friends," she said, "There were a couple of times that we thought about getting more…involved but we decided why mess with a great friendship?"

Maggie nodded and C.J. saw her give Jason a look. C.J. recognized it because she had used it herself many times.

"I can get that logic," Maggie said, "But it's really a lot tougher when the guy's good looking."

C.J. thought about Maggie and Jason, wondering if there were anything else between them than friendship and a solid professional relationship that dated back five years.

"I won't argue with that," she said.

"So are you seeing anyone," Jason asked.

C.J. looked surprised but smiled.

"That's a little complicated," she said, "But the shorter answer is, no."

"That's good to know," Jason said, winking at her.

She started to say something in response but a couple of news reporters approached them, keeping them quite busy for a while.

* * *

Matt wandered around the art exhibit, pulling on his neck tie. His second tuxedo that week, he thought as he watched Roy explain to his girlfriend some history of the artist who had brought his collection to the museum as part of a nationwide tour. He watched Sophia nod her head, at his uncle's comments on each piece of art and how she held onto his arm as they walked across the room.

Guests filled the exhibit area and tables filled with trays of ___Hors_ d' oeuvres lined the perimeter of the room. Matt walked over to the bar in the corner to buy a scotch. While the bartender filled his glass, Matt looked around for Ginger and saw her talking to a couple of older gentlemen. She saw him watching and threw him a wave. By the time, he left the bar and walked to a statue of an archer positioned in the center of the exhibit, she had walked over to stand next to him. Ginger looked attractive in her gown, the sleeves just off of her shoulders and the scent of lilacs hit his nose.

"Look at the fine line of his arm, how seamless it is between his shoulder and his fingers holding the bow."

Matt looked but saw the miracle of a block of marble transformed into a human being in great detail and thought that was enough.

"So how do you like it," Ginger asked, waving her arm around the room.

He sipped his scotch.

"It's very nice," he said, "My uncle knows much more about this type of thing than I do."

"Oh but surely you have an appreciation for the arts," Ginger said, "Do you collect any artwork?"

"Some, but most of it I encounter through work."

"That must be fascinating."

"I've worked on cases involving paintings and sculptures, some very well known," he said, "Some thefts but a lot of smuggling."

"Ah yes," Ginger said, "I can see how art could be used for…other purposes than stimulating the senses."

"So how long have you been involved in art collections," he asked.

"Oh, since I first visited museums while growing up," she said, "I went whenever I could, wherever I could…the Louvre of course, the Prado, the best museums in Europe and several in Asia. I still get to travel as part of the job."

"That sounds challenging," he said.

"I feel so lucky to get the job a few years ago," Ginger said, "Unfortunately the circumstances were not good. My predecessor was murdered and I was hired to replace her."

"That's too bad," Matt said.

"Life goes on, as they say," Ginger said, "And I love my job."

She grabbed his arm.

"Come, I will show you one of my favorites," she said.

* * *

After C.J. finished talking to the reporters, she said goodbye to Jason and Maggie and drove back to the ranch with Jed.

"Nice turnout at the press conference," he said, "I'm sure Parker and the developers weren't happy to see their event turned into something else."

"The public is overwhelmingly against their plans," C.J. said, "You'd think that would make some kind of difference."

He shook his head.

"Money talks even in small towns like this one," Jed said, "Maybe especially in small towns."

"It shouldn't be that way."

"I know but we're going to push this all the way," Jed said, "Not that it's going to be easy."

"Then we'll fight," C.J. said.

"You were great with the reporters," he said, "But I guess you've had some practice."

She nodded.

"Yes I have," she said, "But this was actually fun."

He laughed.

"I'm not sure Parker and this Kilroy character would agree," he said.

"Probably not," C.J. said, "But they should have been smart enough to canvass the residents to see if this is actually something they wanted before investing any more money. That's called living in a democratic society."

"You know things could get pretty rough," Jed said, "I don't trust this Kilroy and his boys one bit. Call it the hunch of an ex-cop but I think we might have trouble ahead."

"There's always trouble ahead in cases like this one which involve lots of money and even more emotions," C.J. said, "I once did a murder case in a small town and ran into some serious trouble there. Even had a Moldav cocktail thrown through the window of the motel where I was staying."

"So what did you do?"

"Called Houston to hire him to help me on the case," she said, "And he dropped what he was doing and did."

"It might not be a bad idea to call him to help you out here," Jed said.

She ran her hand through her hair.

"I've done that too much," she said, "He spent months on the run helping me and when he went back to L.A., his agency was a mess. I offered to help him with the backlog but he told me he was fine."

"He probably knew you needed to focus on helping yourself recover from what happened to you," Jed said.

"I know," she said, "He's really been great about everything but I don't want it to be at his own expense. His agency means an awful lot to him, even more so than when we first started it."

"He's hired some guys to help him," he said.

"Yeah, some of Hoyt's friends from the LAPD," she said, "They're all very good for the agency and working hard but he still has a lot of cases to clear before he can even think about coming out here."

* * *

Matt looked at the statue in the garden.

"What is it," he asked.

Ginger laughed.

"Anything you want it to be," she said, "It's abstract art."

He nodded.

"Often we look at abstract art and see into it what we want to see," she said, "Studying its design and its form tells us a lot about ourselves.

"Like a three-dimensional Rorschach test?"

She raised her brows in surprise.

"I did take psychology courses in college," he said, "and more training in the military. It's very important in my line of work."

"I imagine," Ginger said, "So when you look at this piece what do you see?"

Matt's phone rang.

"Excuse me a minute," he said, taking out his phone. He saw that it was Brody.

"Brody, I'm out at an art function," he said, "What is it that can't wait?"

"I was sitting at home with the wife, two children tucked away for the night and…"

"I'm not sure I want to hear this," Matt said, looking at Ginger, "Especially not right now."

"Oh…well anyway, my wife turned on the news and we saw C.J. speaking on it and…"

"C.J., why was she on the news?"

"Oh, she was giving a news conference on that case she's working on out in Colorado," Brody said, "She did very well too."

"Is that what you called me about?"

"No, I received some information on our jewel thief," Brody said, "He managed to unload his cargo to the middleman and he's in your area."

"I'm dressed up and getting a personal tour at the premiere art exhibit in the city right now."

"So," Brody said, "You'd rather be doing that than getting the goods on this guy?"

Matt sighed.

"Not really," he said, "When can you pick me up?"

"I'm just around the corner actually."

Matt put his phone away. Ginger looked at him.

"Bad news?"

"No, but something's come up at work," he said, "I've got to go."

"Now? There's still other art pieces I wanted to show you."

"I'm sorry," he took his hands in hers, "Maybe I can come back and we can finish another time."

She looked disappointed.

"Look, how about meeting me for lunch tomorrow," Matt said.

Her face brightened.

"I know a lovely place."

But he was already gone.

* * *

C.J. opened the door of the cabin and walked in, flicking the light switch and tossing her things on the couch. She walked into the kitchen to get something to drink, settling on some orange juice and then walked back to the couch to sit down and read through some legal documents.

The phone rang.

She reached over for it.

"Hello."

"Hi C.J.,"

"Hi Chris, how are things going?"

"I'm starting to feel human in the mornings," Chris said, "Which makes corporate meetings run a lot smoother."

"I'll bet," C.J. said, "Butterfly's not here right now. She's made a couple friends in her short time here and she's out having dinner with them."

"That's good," Chris said, "I was never against her having friends, I just wanted ones her own age."

"You don't have to explain it to me," C.J. said, "I'm keeping a close eye on her and so are the other folks here."

"How are you doing?"

C.J. laughed, sitting back and tucking her feet under her.

"Busy but things are going much better than I thought they would," she said, "We're working on the permanent now so we can file it in federal court in Denver some time later next week."

"That's great," Chris said, "So if it works, then that will stop the project?"

"Yes, but that's still a ways off," C.J. said, "We've got lots of work to do."

"You and those other attorneys?"

"Yes, I've been working closely with one who's a Harvard grad and a paralegal he brought with him," C.J. said, "There's other attorneys but they're in Denver."

"How's that been going?"

"It's been interesting," C.J. said, "I think one of them, Jason made a pass at me."

"That's cool," Chris said, "What's he like?"

"Very good looking and very nice," C.J. said, "But I think his paralegal, Maggie has a thing for him."

"Ouch," Chris said.

"I like him and I'm attracted to him," C.J. said, "But…"

"You're worried about Maggie's feelings."

"I think she really cares for him," C.J. said, "I don't want to see her get hurt and know I caused it."

"Okay, then why don't you help her out then," Chris said, "And see what Jason does."

* * *

Brody picked up Matt in front of the art museum and they took off towards the pawn shop. This time, Matt got out of the car in front of the boarded up pawn shop and Brody drove the car to the other side of the alley.

Matt watched the front of the shop for any activity, cloaked by darkness and sure enough within minutes, a man exited it, this time carrying a briefcase. Matt watched him walk towards the alley and followed just behind him.

The man stood in the alley and waited, until another man showed up. They had some sort of conversation. Matt reached for his gun and crept towards the dumpster.

After the exchange was made, Matt stepped from behind the dumpster and aimed his gun at the man after the other had disappeared back into the shadows. The man looked up and took off running in the opposite direction as Matt had hoped he would. Now all that was needed was for Brody to block him off on the other end of the alley. Matt looked through the darkness for Brody but couldn't see him. He took off after the man who ran away from him.

He sprinted down the alley, inching on the guy who kept looking behind him. Suddenly, Brody appeared on cue on the other side of the alley. The man stopped between them, looking from one to the other as if deciding which one were the lesser evil. Matt hoped he chose Brody. Instead, the man spun on his heels and tried to climb up one of the fire escapes on the rear side of the buildings which backed the alley. Matt put his gun away and ran up, trying to grab his legs after the man had pulled down one of the ladders and started scrambling up it. The bag fell out of his hands and onto the ground, spilling jewelry on the street. The man kicked his legs to get Matt to loosen his grip, but Matt moved his head to dodge the blows.

Brody came running up with his gun out to help Matt.

"All right, dirt bag, show's over," he said. The man turned his face around and sneered at both of them.

"You can't catch me," he said.

"It seems we've already done that," Matt said, still pulling on his legs, "Why don't you make it easier on all of us and just give up?"

The man turned around and tried to continue up the ladder. Matt and Brody together pulled him down and he landed with a thud on both of them, so that all of them were piled in the street, next to the bag of jewelry. Matt and Brody finally picked the guy up and got him on his feet.

"That belong to you," Matt said about the bag of spilled stolen goods.

"Never saw it before in my life," the man said, looking down at it.

"Yeah right," Matt said, "You hold onto him. I'll call the police to come pick up their serial jewel thief."

"I'm sure our clients will be happy to see their heirlooms again," Brody said, as he grabbed the guy.

"Yeah I'm sure you're right." Matt said, brushing himself off.

Another check for the ledger, Matt thought as he reached for his cell phone to call Hoyt.

* * *

After saying goodbye to Chris, C.J. continued with her paperwork, lying on the couch as she waited for Butterfly to get back. She reached for her lap top to get on the internet to visit a couple of legal sites to research case law when the phone rang again.

She reached for it.

"Hello," she said.

"Is this C.J. Parsons," a man's voice said.

"Yes, this is she," she said, looking at the Caller ID which stated 'unknown', "Who is this?"

"That's not important," the voice said, "What is important is this so listen closely. You had better drop out of this case if you know what's good for you."

"Listen, who is this?"

"If you don't drop it, you and everyone working with you will pay the price."

"Are you working for those developers," C.J. said, "Tell them..."

"You and your friends will die," the voice said, "You hear that bitch?"

C.J. listened to the dial tone and then hung up, rubbing her eyes with her hand. It wasn't like she had never received death threats and she discovered through experience that most of them didn't pan out to much action besides trying to scare her off of a case or an investigation. However, others that she had received had led to action against her or those she loved. Figuring out the appropriate category to place each threat was a skill she had yet to master.

She picked up the phone.

* * *

Hoyt paced between the two men, popping Rolaids in his mouth as he did so.

"So let me get this straight," he said, "So I know exactly what dragged me away from a quiet dinner with my wife in our favorite restaurant."

He pointed at Brody.

"You received a tip that he was coming back here to fence some goods tonight."

Brody nodded. Hoyt turned to Matt.

"And you were getting a personal tour of the new art exhibit at the museum by the director when he called you."

"Exactly," Matt said, "We couldn't let this perfect opportunity to nab this guy slip by, Hoyt. So we went after him and this time, we got him right in the act."

Hoyt looked at Matt.

"He's denied ever having even touched those jewelry," he said, "And maybe his prints will show up and make a liar out of him but we don't just need this two-bit thief. We need the network he and others like him are selling to."

"I know that Hoyt," Matt said, "And we've got leads on the network that's responsible for all the action on the Westside."

"Give me a list and I'll hand it to property," Hoyt said.

"We will do that when we check out some more leads," Matt said.

"Why did I know you were going to tell me that," Hoyt said, "I'm leaving now to enjoy what's left of this evening with my wife."

"I'm sorry about spoiling your anniversary dinner," Matt said.

"It's not the first time," Hoyt said with a sigh, "And she knows that's part of being a cop's wife but she stuck with me all these years anyway."

They watched him leave.

"He'll get over it," Brody said, "I know, I worked with him for years in the field."

"We've got to get to work on that list," Matt said, as they walked back to the car.

"I'm still working on it," Brody said, "My contact is still checking some leads out on his own."

"So what do we do until then?"

They reached the car and got inside of it.

"We talk about that vacation that you're planning on taking some time inside this century."

* * *

"C.J., it's probably nothing," Jason said on the phone after she had contacted him.

"We don't know that," she said, "It's hard to tell if a threat is serious until the person making it takes some action or not."

He sighed.

"We've got to keep going forward," he said, "Besides if they're threatening us, we know we've got them scared."

"That might be true," she said, "And I'm not saying that we should stop what we're doing. We just need to be more careful."

"I've gotten threats before," Jason said, "Even death threats on other environmental cases. They usually don't amount to much."

"I've gotten them too," C.J. said, "And sometimes the person does act."

"We'll be careful," Jason said, "We won't travel alone. We'll keep in close contact."

"The judge might be coming out with the written order tomorrow," C.J. said.

"Well that's definitely good news," Jason said, "I hope it gives the earlier decision more teeth."

"I guess we'll have to wait and see."

* * *

Matt went to his office to do some more research after leaving Brody in his wake with his questions about Matt's vacation plans unanswered. He heated up some frozen pizza and looked through some papers on the jewelry theft case. Insurance claims submitted by several of his clients and photos of the missing jewelry. The police department had seized the bag of jewelry at the scene so Matt couldn't check to see if it contained any that belonged to his clients. His shoulder throbbed after the latest adventure and he rubbed it while looking through the files on the jewelry case.

A pang hit him as he remembered how he had left Ginger at the art museum while he ran off to meet Brody to chase after the latest suspect on one of his many investigation cases. He sighed as he was reminded once again how his career interfered with his social life and another woman was left behind in its wake. He used to commiserate about that with his former partner, C.J. who shared his problem. She usually knew what to say to get his mind off of it and reminded him that his work as an investigator was an important part of his identity and if the women in his life (and the men in hers) couldn't accept it, then they should just keep looking.

He smiled, thinking about her and he did wish he could drop his workload on Brody and his other investigators and jump on one of his jets to fly out to see her in Colorado. He missed the days when they worked side by side much more than he usually admitted to anyone including himself. But life had become so much more complicated in the past year and what happened after his party hadn't made it easier.

He turned on the television to watch the news.

* * *

Butterfly opened the door to see C.J. sitting on the couch covered with documents.

"Waiting up for me," she said, closing the door behind her.

C.J. sat up.

"That's my job," she said, "But I also had a lot of work to do before tomorrow. Did you have a good time?"

"You know I'm not stupid," Butterfly said, "I can take care of myself."

"I know that, but seeing you come in safely after a night out makes me feel better."

Butterfly thought about that.

"Okay, well I'm back," she said, "Is there any ice cream left in the freezer?"

"I think some survived from last night," C.J. said, "Help yourself."

Butterfly started to go then stopped.

"Would you like me to get you a bowl?"

C.J. smiled.

"Sure, thanks."

The phone rang. It was a busy night, she thought picking it up.

"Hello, this is C.J."

"You're keeping late hours, even for an attorney," a voice said.

"Who is this," she said.

"You've been warned to drop this case," the voice said, "If you don't announce that you're dropping it by tomorrow morning, you will pay the price."

She heard a click then a dial tone.

Butterfly walked out with two bowls of ice cream and saw the expression on C.J.'s face.

"What's the matter," she said.

C.J. shook her head, then smiled.

"Nothing," she said, "Thanks for the ice cream. What is it?"

"Butter Pecan."

* * *

Matt glanced at the news while doing his work, then saw a familiar face on the screen.

"We believe that these tactics are being used to elicit favorable publicity towards a project which in actuality, few of the town's residence or the ranchers in the valleys even want in their midst."

C.J. stood in front of City Hall dressed in jeans and a blazer jacket, with her curly hair resting on her shoulders surrounded by a man and a woman and spoke in a microphone held by a reporter.

"So what will your next move be," the reporter asked.

"We will be reviewing our options before we make a final decision on what action we're planning to take to stop this project."

The camera zoomed in on the reporter.

"This is Cathy Streeter from KSLD news, Silver Lode."

Matt reached for the remote and turned the television off. He reached for his phone.

C.J.'s phone rang again and she looked at it, before deciding to pick it up.

"Hello, who is this?"

"It's Matt."

"Oh it's you," she said, sighing.

"Who did you think it was?"

"No one...Not that you're no one," she said, "I'm glad you called."

"I saw you on television talking about the project that you're fighting out there."

"Yeah, the other side had a press conference to generate support," she said, "It didn't work well for them."

"It looked like a huge crowd there," Matt said, "I hope they were on your side."

"Oh yeah, we've had great support here from almost everyone," she said, "Almost everyone."

"So have you had any problems," Matt asked.

She paused.

"No...no serious ones that we can't handle," she said, "How are things going on your end?"

"Busy as usual," he said, "Though Brody and I caught that jewel thief today."

"That's great," she said, "Thanks for telling me. I really miss you."

He paused.

"How would you feel if I got out from under this mess here and came out for a visit?"

"It'd be great," she said, "But I don't want your business to suffer. I've taken enough away from it."

"You haven't taken away anything from it, C.J.," Matt said, "Don't worry about it. It's doing fine."

She heard a knock on the door.

"Listen Houston, I got to go," she said, "Someone's at the door. I'll talk to you later, okay?"

"Bye," he said, then clicked off his phone looking at it.

C.J. looked at Butterfly and then cautiously approached the door. Butterfly looked at her, puzzled.

"What's the big deal," she said, "Open it and see who it is."

"I'm going to see who it is first," C.J. said, as she reached the door.

Butterfly shrugged and returned to her ice cream.

"Who is you," C.J. said.

"It's me, Jed," the voice said, "Something's happened."


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6--The latest installment in this story. Hope you like it and thanks for the feedback!

* * *

"What's going on," C.J. asked Jed after she opened the door and let him in.

"We received a phone call to watch our backs," Jed said, "Bonnie was the one who picked up the phone."

C.J. and Jed went to sit in the living room.

"Where's Butterfly," Jed asked.

"She must be in her bedroom," C.J. said, "She was just here."

Jed sighed.

"Bonnie was upset but more worried about you," he said, "Have you received anything like that?"

C.J. nodded.

"Two phone calls, both threats within an hour or so," she said, "If I didn't drop the case by tomorrow, something bad would happen."

"Did you tell anyone," Jed said.

"I called Jason and he hadn't received anything but I passed it along."

"We've got to call the sheriff," Jed said.

"That's not an option," C.J. said, "We both know who he's working for and it's not the residents of this county."

"Then we'll call the FBI tomorrow," Jed said, "We can't let this go on."

"Okay, we'll call them tomorrow," she said, "But we've got to be in Silver Lode for that closed session meeting so we'll hear any decision that comes out of it."

* * *

Matt stayed up with his paper work and some coffee. He didn't feel sleepy and thought that if he could catch up with updating some of his files, then he might at least see the light at the end of the tunnel. Brody hadn't called back on an update of the list of leads on the jewelry case. Hoyt had left a message on his voice mail telling him irately that the thief had bailed out within hours. And Matt didn't feel like calling either of them.

He wasn't happy that the thief had been released but knew that was how it usually worked. Now the guy would just disappear for a while before reemerging someplace else, most likely another large city. At least they had some of the jewelry back.

He reached for the next pile of papers to sort thorough and put in smaller piles. His mind drifted to the night of his party.

* * *

The party began winding down and the guests began leaving. Matt looked for C.J. but couldn't find her. He did run into Brody in the kitchen.

"I thought I'd get started on the dishes," Brody said, "I know, not my style to do women's work but I did bus tables and wash dishes before I became a cop."

Matt looked at the tall stacks which more closely resembled the leaning tower of Pisa than dishes.

"I can handle it," Brody said, "But this isn't going to be a regular gig for me or I'll start charging."

"Where'd C.J. run off to," Matt asked, "I know I saw her earlier."

"She said something about taking a walk," Brody said.

"I saw you on the deck with her not too long ago."

"She's a very attractive woman but very complex," Brody said, "She kind of put me in my place."

"What did you say to her," Matt said.

"We had just met," Brody said. "So not very much."

"She wasn't planning to come," Matt said, "She said something had come up at the last minute."

"She showed up," Brody said, "She got through with the grand jury and hopped on an airplane to L.A."

Matt's eyes narrowed.

"Grand jury?"

"That's what she told me after I apologized for my rudeness," Brody said, "She didn't get much notice before she was called."

Matt put his dish down.

"Excuse me," he said.

Brody watched him go.

* * *

Matt let that vision go and sat back looking at the pile on his desk, of folders, papers and photographs of the missing jewelry. After Brody told him about C.J. and the grand jury, he had left to try and find her, without thinking. He continued traveling down that path to where it would go but then stopped himself. That trip down memory lane wasn't helping him in the here and now so he shook his head to clear it and tried to return back to the business in front of him.

Roy poked his head in.

"You still here," he asked.

Matt nodded.

"Just sorting through everything that's on my desk."

Roy sat down in a chair across from him.

"Why are you really still up and spending time here instead of at home?"

Matt looked at his uncle, who relaxed in his chair waiting for a response to his question. He knew from experience his uncle was a very patient man.

"I've got a pile of work to do," he said, "that's not going to get any smaller unless I go through it."

"You've always had piles of paperwork, Matlock," Roy said, "That's just an excuse."

"No it's not," Matt said, "I've got to get all these pictures of jewelry organized so I'll be ready whenever the LAPD decides to reunite the goods we recovered tonight to their rightful owners."

"That could take time," Roy said, "We both know that they might need to keep it in evidence until the case concludes and it won't until they've brought down the entire fencing ring."

Matt rubbed the sleepiness out of his eyes.

"The jewel thief's already taken off," he said, "Hoyt said he bailed out."

"He'll turn up again," Roy said, "They always do."

Matt leaned back in his chair.

"So how was the art exhibit after I left," he asked.

"Breathtaking. You missed quite an event," Roy said, "Ginger was a great hostess."

Matt sighed.

"I apologized to her for having to take off like that," he said.

"An oft repeated behavior in your relationships with women," Roy said.

Matt raised his brows.

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"I thought it was pretty obvious," Roy said, "You have difficulty separating your professional work as an investigator from your personal life."

"You're one to talk from your job history," Matt said, "At least I'm only living one life, not two or three different ones."

"The life of a covert operative had its challenges and its sacrifices as well as its rewards," Roy said, "And it almost cost me everything and everyone I held dear to me. Which is why I wanted better for you and my own son."

"I got out of intelligence a lot quicker than you did," Matt said, "and I didn't work that side of it."

"Maybe so, nephew," Roy said, "But you are using your career to avoid having a personal life and unlike with myself, that's not a requirement of your profession."

"I'm having lunch with Ginger tomorrow," Matt said, then looked at his watch, "Today actually."

Roy looked at his nephew.

"Who said anything about Ginger?"

* * *

C.J. and Butterfly did some riding in the morning, while the sun rose up over the mountains. Butterfly grumbled a bit at having to rise at an earlier hour but after saddling up Sangria and spending a few minutes riding in the brisk, clean air, she began pointing out the horses which grazed in the meadows with their foals.

"So did you enjoy your time with Carter?"

Butterfly shrugged.

"I guess," she said.

"That doesn't sound very enthusiastic," C.J. said, "What happened?"

"He's a nice guy, but quiet," Butterfly said, "Nothing like Spike."

"Is that a bad thing?"

Butterfly looked down at her reins, her face hidden by her hat.

"I don't think he likes me."

"Why ever would you think that," C.J. said, "He just met you."

"I know, but he doesn't talk very much and I have to say everything just to hear him talk."

"Some guys are just like that, especially at his age," C.J. said, "And more often than not, they grow up and become the better men."

"What do you mean," Butterfly asked.

"Carter's spent most of his life working this ranch with his brothers and sisters," C.J. said, "He's never done a lot of the things that most people your age take for granted. He's always had to look out for his family, first."

"So..."

"That means there's a lot he has to learn how to do just like with you," C.J. said, "Maybe you could help each other with that."

Butterfly paused.

"He's really nice guy, he's very helpful when we're out on the horses because I'm not a very good rider" Butterfly said, "and he's funny too."

"Those qualities are very important when you're in a relationship," C.J. said, "Not that you need to worry about that yet."

"What," Butterfly said, "You didn't go out with guys at all when you're my age."

C.J. smiled.

"Of course I did," she said, "And I thought I was ready for a guy that's probably cut from the same mold as Spike."

Butterfly frowned.

"Spike's a cool guy," she said.

"So was Brick, or so I thought," C.J. said, "Look, you're only young once. You have your whole life to be an adult and when you grow up, these years will be something you look back fondly on."

Butterfly wrinkled her nose.

"Brick?"

* * *

Matt sat in his office, drinking more coffee. He had drifted off to sleep for a few hours before waking up to find himself still in his chair and his work still in front of him. He got up, showered and then brewed some coffee, before returning to his desk. He tried to pick up where he had left off but his mind kept returning to his conversation with Roy.

His uncle's words had irritated him even after Roy had gone home. And he knew enough that if what Roy said irked him, then his words had hit home. He knew he had been spending almost all of his waking hours working on his caseload but he didn't see where he had a choice. The investigators he had hired were a boon to his business but it was taking him time to get them up to speed and caught up. He had turned down two cases yesterday, something he hated doing but he didn't have the time to take on any more work. But then he also admitted to himself that if the cases had grabbed his attention, he would have added them to his list without a second thought. And neither of them had done that. In fact, none of his cases he had accepted lately really challenged him to his marrow like they would have a year or so ago.

Something had changed within him, only he didn't know what. His uncle did, but in his usual style, he didn't come out and say what but dropped questions here and there like an ex-intelligence operative would and left Matt to tie the ends of them together.

And maybe he could do it faster if he weren't so damned busy all the time.

The phone rang.

"Hello," he said after he picked it up.

"Oh Matt, I thought I might have called too early but you had to take off so quickly last night."

"I'm sorry about that, Ginger," Matt said, "My partner and I got a lead on a case we've been working on for quite a while."

"Did it work out?"

"Yes, we caught up with the guy, caught him in the act and the police came and arrested him."

"That's good," she said, "Was he a dangerous criminal?"

"He was a jewel thief who had robbed some of our clients."

"I see," she said, "Well anyway, I called and made reservations for today at The Karmic Garden for 12:30 pm. Is that okay with you?"

"The Karmic Garden," Matt said, "Sounds interesting. I'll see you there."

"Good, don't be late."

Matt put the phone down and picked up some photographs of jewelry to look at them again. He tossed them in the pile to forward to the LAPD to see if they matched up with the jewelry recovered last night.

"Hey, what you sitting around for," a voice said.

Matt looked up and saw Brody standing in his doorway.

"Who let you in," he said.

"No one," Brody said, "There's no one else here."

"Oh yeah, sorry I've been very busy this morning."

Brody looked at Matt, then at his cluttered desk.

"I can see that," he said, "Did you ever make it home last night?"

Matt shook his head.

"Too much work to do here," he said, yawning.

"Well pack it up, we've got to get a move on," Brody said.

"Why, what have you done now?"

"I got a lead on who the contact for the jewel thief might be," Brody said, "But we have a very narrow window of opportunity so we've got to get going."

"I've only got a few hours," Matt said, "I promised Ginger I'd be on time to meet her for lunch."

"Sounds serious," Brody said, "Okay, I'll have you back on time for your rendezvous with the luscious art director."

* * *

C.J. and Butterfly met Jed and Reed in a meadow near the corner of the ranch. The two men had been tending to a lame mare.

"Is that Willow?"

Jed nodded, patting her.

"She's got a minor stone bruise," he said, "She should be just fine in a couple of days."

"Butterfly and I saw some more horses in the eastern pasture," she said, "A few pair."

"They were grazing," Butterfly said, "They looked so happy."

"They are," Jed said, then he frowned, "I did hear some reports from Flynn that some of the mustangs were being harassed by some men."

"On what property?"

"Federal, where it meets up with the Wyatt place."

"They're not supposed to be there," C.J. said.

"The problem is," Jed said, "An order's been issued but no one here will enforce it."

"Then we got to do it," C.J. said, "Let's go."

They rode off.

* * *

Matt and Brody drove out towards downtown L.A. and quickly found themselves in a traffic jam, with horns honking around them.

"We should have taken the freeway," Matt said.

"That's worse," Brody said, "Besides, this is more scenic."

The light turned red in front of them and a crowd of pedestrians crossed in front of them.

"Why are you so concerned about the jewelry case," Brody said, "It's going to be months before our clients will see their jewelry."

"I turned down two cases yesterday because we can't handle them," Matt said.

"You didn't want them anyway," Brody said, "Or you would have snapped them up and then called me and the other guys and told us to get to work on them."

"Point taken," Matt said, "They were just run of the mill cases the kind I've done hundreds of since I started."

Brody turned around to look at him.

"Matt, do you enjoy what you're doing?

Matt looked surprised at the question but Brody thought, not nearly as surprised as he should have been.

"It doesn't look like I'm the first to ask you this question."

Matt sighed as he started inching through the gridlock again.

"No you're not," he said, "My uncle, Roy's been hitting me with it too."

"So what's your answer?"

Matt paused.

"I'm just asking because in this line of work, you have to be focused at all times and you have to really be into what you're doing, keep that edge up because it's dangerous, the hours stink and the conditions can be lousy."

"The pay's good…"

"Yeah, but somehow I never got the impression that you're in this for the money."

"I started my agency because I wanted to help people," Matt said, "And I have but lately, it seems that it's mostly about helping wealthy people recover property that most people can't afford and to stop people from blackmailing people who probably deserve it."

"Ah yes, the latest guru of relationships with the girlfriend on the side being threatened through begonias."

"C.J. got out of this line of work and she's doing something to help other women," Matt said, "She seems very happy doing it and it's kept her very busy."

"Would you really want to go through what she did just to get at that point?"

Matt looked out his window.

"If I could undo what happened to her, I would," he said, "But she took something that was a nightmare and used it to change other women's lives."

"You can do that without the nightmare part," Brody said, "Maybe you should take a step away from it and think about it."

"I'm too busy," Matt said.

"That's why this vacation thing in the Rockies is so perfect. It would give you a chance to get away to think about it, to help C.J. on a case which she's passionate about and to get out in the fresh air where it's nice and quiet and away from this chaotic mess which will still be here when you get back."

Matt looked at Brody, thoughtfully then at the wall of cars stretching endlessly ahead of them and no doubt, behind them.

"I'll think about it."

* * *

The four of them rode across the land until they reached the federally owned property. They saw three men with rifles waving them at a group of horses which had taken off leaving a cloud of dust behind.

Jed turned to Butterfly.

"You'd better not come any further," he said.

She nodded.

"And if anything happens, don't ride up. Just take off and get back to the ranch as fast as you can," Jed said, "Thea will know what to do."

"Sure," she said, her eyes widening, "Be careful."

"We will, Butterfly," C.J. said, reaching into her jacket to pull out her gun.

"We'd better go on over and talk with those yahoos," Jed said.

Jed nodded and the three of them rode their horses to where the men were standing. At the sound of the approaching hoof beats, the men looked up and saw them.

"You're on federally owned property going onto a property that's under a protective order by the courts," Jed said, after they pulled up their horses within several yards.

The men put their shotguns down at their sides and one of them walked closer to them.

"What are you going to do about it," he said, "You know these so-called orders are nothing more than paper with writing on it."

"If you violate the order, you will be held in contempt of court," C.J. said.

The man aimed his shotgun at both of them.

"This is the only thing that carries any weight in this situation."

"That's real good to know," Jed said, "Because we brought our arsenal along too."

He, Reed and C.J. pulled their guns out and aimed them at the man.

"By the way, the three of us are expert shots," Jed said, "Are you and your guys?"

C.J. kept her hand steady and looked at the three men closely. They were looking at each other but their leader kept his gun raised and aimed at them.

"You are in violation of the court order and I'm sure the federal government is not going to be happy that you're on its land," C.J. said, "So you need to go off and tell Kilroy and his boys that you are going to abide by that order no matter what instructions you are receiving otherwise."

"How do you know we work for Kilroy?"

C.J. pointed at one of the men standing behind him.

"He was sitting behind Kilroy at the meeting the other night," she said, "and talking to him afterward."

"They're bluffing," that man said, "They'll never shoot us."

The other two men raised their guns again to aim at them.

"Don't count on it," Jed said, "I've been shot before and I don't intend to go through that again in this life. I just got married."

"If you're going to shoot us," C.J. said, "Then do it quick. I've survived three bullet wounds and they all hurt like a son of a gun. I'm not going through that experience again."

They stared at her.

"Sorry, bad pun."

"I don't believe you," the leader said.

"We can compare bullet scars if you like," she said, "Jed's got a nice one on his shoulder from a professional hit man hired by an international human trafficker, I've got a few. How about you?"

"And don't think that women are the weaker sex," Jed said, "Because this one's taken down two of those professional hit man herself."

"They're lying," one of the men said.

"No, I think I heard about them on the news," another said, "and watched them on _60 Minutes_."

C.J. and Jed looked at each other.

"So what's it going to be," C.J. said, "Are you going to leave quietly or is it going to come to a shootout with the quickest trigger pullers winning?"

The men looked at each other and slowly lowered their guns.

"Good decision," she said, "Now this is where we say goodbye and you leave."

"You're not going to get away with this," the leader yelled as they headed back to what C.J. and Jed saw was a faded black pickup truck.

C.J. put her gun away and glanced at her watch.

"Look at the time," she said, "We'd better hurry if we want to make that closed session meeting."

* * *

"There he is," Brody said, pointing to a thin man with a pony tail standing next to a tree in the middle of the square.

"I hope you remember where we left the car," Matt said as they walked into the square.

"I always do," Brody said, "Now this guy might be a little bit jumpy."

The man glanced right and left with his hands in his pockets as they approached him.

"Hi, this is my partner, Matt Houston," Brody said, "We're working that jewelry case."

"I heard your guy made bail and split," the man said, "Do you have a cigarette?"

"No man," Brody said, "You know L.A.'s a smoke-free city."

"I only smoke once in a while to calm my nerves," the man said.

"Yeah, well Mac what did you bring us all the way across this fine city to tell us?"

"The vendors are all lying low," Mac said, "Until this latest arrest blows over."

"Why," Brody asked, "It was just one small jewelry dealer who got busted."

"Everyone else is waiting to see if that guy will resurface and talk," Mac said, "I don't think he's going to spill anything. Probably split town."

"You may be right," Matt said, "but eventually if there's merchandise, those vendors are going to sell to satisfy the market."

Mac nodded.

"But they're waiting orders," he said, "From the guy in charge."

"Who's that," Brody asked.

The man looked fearful.

"I can't tell you," he said, starting to walk away.

"What," Brody said, "You brought us all the way out here and you're not going to tell us?"

"He's…I can't," the man said walking away, "Leave me alone."

Matt and Brody looked at each other.

The man rushed off.

Matt looked at his watch.

"That didn't tell us very much," he said, "Except that whoever this guy was going to snitch on is a bigger predator in this food chain than he is."

"I wonder if it's some kind of inside job," Brody said, "Who would he be afraid to implicate?"

"He's clearly not telling us who's in charge of this operation."

"Are you going to be late to your mid-day liaison with Ginger," Brody asked.

"If I rush now, I should make it," he said.

* * *

C.J. entered the kitchen and saw Thea there on the phone. When she hung up, she shook her head.

"That was Reed's mom, Carol," Thea said, "She said there was some excitement on federal land."

"Some guys showed up harassing a small group of mustangs," C.J. said, "We took care of it."

"She said there were guns involved," Thea said.

C.J. served herself some soup from the stove.

"We brought ours too."

"This is getting ugly awfully fast, C.J.," Thea said, "We really want to win this fight but we don't want you or anyone else to get hurt or killed over it."

"That's not going to happen," C.J. said, "They're just trying to scare us so we won't push for a permanent injunction."

"They might not stop with threats," Thea said.

"They won't do any good once the permanent injunction is granted by a judge."

"That's going to happen right away if it happens at all," Thea said, "We all know the stakes here and what it means for Silver Lode not to mention the valley. We just want you to be careful."

"The problem is that no one will enforce the temporary order because the feds aren't bringing people down here and everyone locally who should is in cahoots with Kilroy and Parker."

"You know, Parker used to be a good guy," Thea said, "He was close with Gordon before he died but he's changed since."

"Maybe he thinks he needs their backing if he runs for mayor again," C.J. said, "I guess we'll find out what the city council's response is going to be to our legal reaction in a couple of hours."

"We're all going to be there."

* * *

Matt and Brody got off the elevator and saw Roy sitting in the lobby reading a magazine. He looked up at them.

"Difficult day at the office?"

Matt glared at Brody then removed his jacket.

"What happened," Roy said, putting his magazine down, "Fall into a ditch?"

"We ran into a little trouble on the way to the Karmic Garden."

"I can see that," Roy said, "I don't think such an upscale restaurant like that one is going to let you in unless you shower and change."

"I didn't know that the truck driver would drive so close to the puddle," Brody said, "No one could have seen it."

"You parked us next to a tar pit," Matt said.

"No actually those are in West L.A.," Brody said, "Technically it was just mud and a lot of water."

"I'll be back," Matt said, leaving them.

Roy chuckled.

"Eventually he's going to run out of suits in that closet of his," he said.

"It's all my fault," Brody said, "His dry cleaning bills were probably much cheaper before he hired me."

"No, Brody," Roy said, "You've been a great help to him and a good friend."

"He's a good guy," Brody said, "A little wound up. Was he always like this?"

Roy shook his head.

"The opposite," Roy said, "But this is what happens to you when you get off track. He needs to remember why he got into this business to begin with."

"He's got to stop treating it like a business," Brody said, "And more like a passion."

"Agreed," Roy said, "But that means going back to the basics which means the beginning."

"Maybe not," Brody said.

* * *

She reacted when Brody had reached for her arm and he withdrew it.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean…"

C.J. looked at him, came back from where she had gone in her thoughts and smiled.

"It's nothing personal," she said, "It's just that people think because they read about you in some newspapers that they know everything about you."

"Matt talks a lot about you too," Brody said, "How you both started this business and built it up to where it is today."

"It was something he needed to do to live," she said, "To balance out some horrible parts in his life. To bring justice for others if he couldn't get it for himself."

"He did catch up to the man responsible for his kidnapping when he was a child."

"Yes eventually, but he kept at it because he really wants to help others especially those who have no one else to turn to when they're in trouble."

Brody nodded.

"And you worked with him when any law firm in the city, hell the country would have had you?"

She looked at him pointedly.

"He's my best friend," she said, "And he's always been there when I've needed him without asking. We're family."

"But you moved away and now I'm doing your job."

"And doing it well, I've heard," she said, "So I've left it in good hands."

"The guy has enough money to start his own country, a small one," he said, "But he turned over entire company to charity to focus on being an investigator."

She smiled again.

"Is this 20 questions," she said, "Because these are things you should really ask him."

* * *

"Man, look at the crowd," Butterfly said, looking out the window as they drove into the parking lot near City Hall.

C.J. and Thea looked and saw people standing all around them.

"It looks like the entire town came out," Thea said.

They parked the car and left it to join the others in front of the building. Jason and Maggie came up to them.

"They just started the meeting," he said, "It could be a while or it could be done in 10 minutes."

"What's most likely to happen is that the council's going to come out and say it's going to fight the order, unless enough council members vote to stop that."

Jason looked troubled.

"I think there's several members on our side who at least want to keep the town's coffers out of it," he said, "But I think that Parker and Kilroy have a couple in their corner."

"They probably spent the last 24 hours lobbying hard for votes," Maggie said.

"They violated the order already," C.J. said, "Jed, Reed and I ran into several of Kilroy's guys who wanted to compare caliber size."

"Oh my God," Maggie said, "What happened?"

"We ran them off, but we have to find some entity to put some teeth in this order until we can get a more permanent one."

"We could get some ranchers to stand guard on the areas covered by the order which are more vulnerable," Thea said.

Jed nodded.

"I'll go talk to the ones here and get this started."

"C.J., are you sure you're going to be okay," Jason said, "It was never the intent to have you act as an enforcer."

"Our intent was to do what we needed to do to help the ranchers save their valley and everything that lives in it."

"But isn't that going to get someone hurt," Maggie said, "I know Jason and I have faced trouble in the past but we may need some help."

"We're short that right now Maggie, "Jason said, "We'll be fine."

He walked off to join Jed. The rest of them saw Bonnie setting up a food stand with the employees from the diner and went to help them.

"C.J., how dangerous do you think this will get?"

"Maggie, I think right now it's more bark than bite," C.J. said, "But that doesn't mean we don't take precautions."

"I'm worried about Jason," Maggie said, "He seems to be brushing this off."

"I think he's just doing that so we'll feel better," C.J. said, "I think he knows how serious this could get."

"I hope so," Maggie said.

"You really care about him," C.J. said.

"Yeah, we've been best friends since I started working with him," she said, "I was a waitress for years before I started going to paralegal school. He was the only one who would give me a chance and hire me."

"It's hard to tell him how you feel because you're worried it will all change, isn't it?"

Maggie turned her face around, startled.

"How'd you know?"

* * *

Matt walked into the restaurant and the maitre `de looked at him.

"May I help you sir," he asked.

Matt looked around at the plush surroundings which included a fountain as a centerpiece with wind chimes playing melodies and then looked at his watch. 10 minutes to 1. He almost made it on time.

"I'm here to meet Ginger…" he said, before realizing he couldn't remember her last name.

The man's face brightened.

"Ah, you must be here to meet Ginger Winslow," he said, "She's a regular diner."

"Yes, I'm a few minutes late," Matt said, "I had to stop by the office."

"Follow me," the man said.

He led Matt to a corner table where Ginger sat, looking at her organizer. When she looked up and saw Matt, she smiled.

"Good to see you," she said.

He sat down.

"Sorry I'm late," Matt said, "It's been quite a morning."

"Well, as long as you can promise me an hour of your time," she said.

"That I can do," he said, picking up a menu.

"I've taken the liberty of ordering the house wine."

"That's fine," he said, "What do you recommend here?"

"The pasta dishes are very good," she said, "But the salmon and endive salad are extraordinary. Felix is a master."

"It all looks good," he said, "So how was your morning?"

"Spent cataloging acquisitions from all different places," she said, "We had some exquisite shipments come in from in this morning from Bangkok."

"Nice city," Matt said, "I spent some time there when I was in the military and several trips on business."

"The woman I replaced was much more knowledgeable about Far Eastern art than I was," Ginger said, "She left some good notes behind before her death and that's really helped."

"She was murdered, right?"

"Yes," Ginger said, "I don't know the details but something to do with a drug smuggling ring."

"Connie Ling…"

Ginger looked at him, surprised.

"Yes," she said, "How did you know?"

"She was a college roommate of my friend and former partner" Matt said, "Connie had contacted her just before she was killed for help but we couldn't get there in time."

"How awful," she said.

"Yeah it was really hard on C.J."

"Your partner."

Matt nodded.

"Ms Ling meant a lot to your friend?"

"She took a bullet while trying to find her killer," Matt said, "One of the scariest days of my life."

"I can imagine."

* * *

Jason came up to Maggie and C.J. who were eating some French fries being served at Bonnie's table courtesy of the diner.

"It looks like it won't be much longer until they come out with an announcement," he said.

"Here, have some of these," Maggie said, passing him some fries.

"Thanks," he said, "C.J., so what do you think's going to happen?"

"They'll come out, we'll listen to what we have to say and then we go back to work," C.J. said.

"We've got a lot to do," he said, "Are you free tomorrow?"

C.J. nodded.

"We could work down in the diner again," she said, "Maggie's made great progress on the documents for next week. And I think after today, we'll have more declarations coming in this week."

Jason shook his head.

"I can't believe they violated the order," he said.

"I can," C.J. said, "These guys are obviously desperate to get their hands on their land and they're not wasting a minute to get ready in case it goes their way in court."

"And if it doesn't?"

C.J. rubbed her forehead.

"I don't know what's going to happen then after today."

* * *

A distance away, Kilroy stood next to his partners when a man walked up to him.

"I told you not to come up to me in public," Kilroy said, "After that stunt today, we can't be seen together."

"It's too late boss," the man said, "The woman remembered seeing Bob with you at the meeting the other night."

Kilroy cursed.

"We've got to do something about these outside agitators or we're going to lose this fight."

"We don't have much time to do anything," another partner said, "If there's going to be a hearing on the permanent."

"We've got enough time to do something," Kilroy said, "I'm not losing that land and I'm not leaving it up to Parker and his boys to handle this mess."

"So what are you going to do?"

Kilroy looked at the group of lawyers standing in the distance.

"Whatever it takes to get that land and get moving on this project."

"Threats haven't stopped them" the partner said,"They showed up here after being in an armed standoff with some of your men."

"Then it's time to start taking some actions."


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7--- I finished another installment. I hope you like it.

* * *

C.J. looked up along with other people who filled the parking lot surrounding City Hall to see Parker and other city council members come out of the building and stand on the steps in front of a line of television cameras and people holding microphones. People in the huge crowd stopped talking in groups and moved closer to the building as one organism to listen to the city council issue its announcement on the outcome of its closed session.

Parker moved ahead of the other elected officials, looking at the massive crowd in front of him. A woman who served on the city council joined him. After some employees of City Hall had moved a podium in front of him, Parker walked up to it and tapped the microphone.

Silence greeted him as everyone waited to see what he would tell them. C.J. tried to read his face, but couldn't decide which way he would go though she detected a trace of nervousness there. He glanced to the back of the crowd and she turned her head to where he looked and saw Kilroy standing with some of the other developers. She looked back at Parker who cleared his throat.

"Ladies and Gentlemen of Silver Lode, we the city council met in closed session with our city attorney and after he presented the facts of the situation and after we deliberated long and hard over this issue, we came to a majority vote."

"Just tell us what you've decided and skip the buildup," a man shouted from the crowd.

"If people will be quiet and listen, I'll tell you what the city council's decision was," Parker said, pulling at his collar.

"He looks like he's not very happy with the vote," Jed said to C.J.

"The city council voted 3-2 not to use the town's money to fund the defense," Parker said, "But I exercised my veto power and overrode that decision."

"You can't do that," another voice yelled from the audience.

"Yes I can," Parker said, "It's in the town's bylaws. You are free to read a copy of them at the front desk inside this building."

The boos in the crowd filled the air and some of the city council members looked at each other, wondering if they should go back in the building.

"So the issue went back to a second vote to see if the city council could override my veto," Parker continued, "And one city council member said that she wanted to think on the issue some more so the decision has been postponed until further notice."

People in the crowd looked at each other. Some cheered while others booed and the crowd began to push against the City Hall, pinning the men holding television cameras against the steps.

Jason and C.J. climbed a couple steps ahead of the media representatives. Jason addressed the crowd.

"Did you know Mayor Parker that some men showed up on federal land near the Wyatt property in violation of the temporary restraining order?"

Parker just looked at them.

"Yes it's true," C.J. said, and stepped down to hand out press releases to the reporters, "They were on the property with guns and harassing a small group of mustangs. Mares and foals who were grazing on the landt as they have been for over 100 years."

Parker's face reddened.

"I have not heard any such thing," he said, "That will have to be verified by us before we give any credence to these outlandish allegations."

"Were you involved in ordering that action," C.J. said.

The crowd roared and inched closer, until the reporters and cameramen were pushed further up the stairs and the city council backed up closer to the front entrance.

"No I was not," Parker said, "And like I said, these allegations must be verified first."

* * *

In the corner of the crowd where Kilroy and his partners stood watching events unfold, the mood proved even more somber.

"Damn that city council," one partner said, "We should have never left it up to Parker."

"We needed him to sway enough votes," Kilroy said, "And we're almost there. All we need to do is work on getting one more vote."

"Which one is the holdout?"

"Betty Goodwin would be my bet," Kilroy said, "Parker said she's switched fences before so this might not be a problem."

"It better not be, Kilroy," another partner said, "Because if it becomes one, I'm pulling my money out of this project."

"I think I will as well," another said.

Kilroy held up his hand, feeling his plan slipping away.

"Now hold on," he said, "I told you we can stop this before it goes any further."

"How?"

Kilroy smiled.

"My men are already working on it."

* * *

Matt enjoyed his lunch with Ginger and the food proved to be delicious. But his mind kept wandering back to the past.

He sat in a hospital room, beside C.J. who lay there connected to a variety of tubes and wires leading to hospital equipment keeping her alive. She had woken up when he entered the room and had felt his hands grasp her own. In typical fashion, she had been more worried about him than herself and told him so. He stroked her face to reassure her that he was fine, knowing that the fates had decided that she should live.

"How do you feel now?"

She smiled despite her discomfort.

"Better now that I'm looking at my favorite face in the whole wide world."

He tried to sit beside her a while longer but she quickly shooed him off to continue to search for her friend's killer. That she would be fine and waiting for him when he returned. And she had been despite another attempt on her life by the crooked DEA agent who had been trying to silence any remaining witnesses to his crimes. If it hadn't been for Hoyt… Well anyway, the DEA agent was soon apprehended somewhat the worst for wear because Matt had gotten to him first. Hoyt had shielded him from any potential legal problems by looking the other way though not without raising an eyebrow first.

"You okay?"

He looked up to see Ginger looking at him.

"I'm fine," he said, "Lot on my mind. My workload's been very busy lately."

She laughed.

"I know the feeling," she said, "In fact, I rarely get to do luncheons like this anymore. It's always about business."

"I've been there myself," he said, "My partners keep telling me to take some time off."

"Maybe that's not such a bad idea," she said, "Where would you like to go if you could go anywhere?"

"I was thinking of a ranch in Colorado, south of Denver."

"That's pretty specific," Ginger said, "What's there?"

"My ex-partner's working on a case for some ranchers who are fighting a ski resort," he said, "It's more legal than investigative, a bunch of lawyers getting together and filing papers in court mostly."

"Sounds intriguing," Ginger said, "for lawyers but most people don't choose to spend their leisurely time with attorneys."

"True," Matt said, "But it's beautiful country, lots of wide open space and clean air, a great place to relax."

Ginger laughed.

"All lacking in this great city," she said, "But you can find those things in many other places."

Matt hesitated.

"I haven't seen a lot of my friend lately," he said, "She invited me to come out and assist her on her case but I've been so busy."

Ginger narrowed her eyes.

"The one who took the bullet for Connie," she said.

He nodded.

"Surely you can take some time off," Ginger said, "You have other employees, yes?"

"Four are just starting," he said, "And one of them…"

"What is it?"

"Is coming up this way."

"Matt, thank goodness I tracked you down," Brody said, out of breath.

"I'm in the middle of lunch…"

"I know, but this is too good to pass up," Brody said, "Remember the guy who we met with who got blackmailed?"

"What about him?"

Brody picked some bread off the table.

"You don't mind….Anyway, he got another bunch of flowers this morning with a note. Only they're not begonias."

Matt sighed.

"What are they?"

"Petunias."

Ginger looked from one man to the other, trying to keep up.

"I thought we agreed we weren't taking that case," Matt said.

"But he just got another book deal and it could be worth millions," Brody said, sitting down at the table.

"I don't care if it's worth billions. He's cheating on his wife," Matt said, "If he weren't famous and didn't have a fat wallet, no one would think he was worth blackmailing over it."

"He's a victim…"

"He's not, Brody," Matt said, "He's a hypocrite. He writes books about how men and women should relate to each other and how they have to stick together through the tough times because that's what love is all about and he's cheating on his own wife!"

Brody finally noticed Ginger.

"I'm sorry about interrupting your lunch date and talking shop…"

"By all means, continue, this is fascinating," she said, looking at her watch, "And I still have 15 minutes until I have to be back at the museum."

"See that's the difference between you and me, Matt," Brody said, waving his bread stick, "You're a romantic and I'm a pragmatist."

"I hope that's not the only difference," Matt said, "And I just happen to think that when men and women make promises to each other, it should mean something bigger than both of them."

"Hey, I'm married and got the house with the picket fence. Okay it could use a paint job but I got the wife and kids and you've been what engaged a couple of times and left one fiancée at the altar?"

"She left me," Matt said, "And she was right."

"I remember reading about your breakup in the "Passages" section of _PEOPLE_, "Ginger said, "I think she made a mistake."

"It's nice of you to say that Ginger," Matt said, "But it would have never worked out and I'm thankful that at least one of us saw that coming."

"That must have been difficult."

"I'd rather not talk about my personal life in the middle of a restaurant," Matt said.

"No problem," she said, "I've been there a time or two myself. Only I don't have to read about my marital status in the gossip pages."

"So should we go meet with this Fortworth guy?"

Ginger's face lit up.

"_The_ Douglas Forthworth," she said, "I've read all his books. He's cheating on his wife?"

Matt looked pointedly at Brody.

"Maybe I'll just leave you two to finish your lunch," Brody said.

"Don't worry about it," Ginger said, "I've got to head back to work anyway. The museum staff is meeting with a delegation from Sri Lanka about a possible exhibit for our upcoming winter series."

They left the restaurant together and went to the parking lot. Ginger embraced Matt and kissed him on the cheek.

"Thank you for the lunch," she said, "It was…interesting."

"I'm sorry for the intrusion," Matt said, "Some people say I've got problems separating my personal and professional lives."

"Most of us do," Ginger said, "I'd like to do this again."

"Ginger…"

She patted him on the arm.

"As friends," she said, "Your…personal life seems a bit complicated but you're a very nice guy and not just nice looking."

"Thank you and you're a very nice lady," Matt said.

"Take care and we'll keep in touch."

He nodded and she walked away.

"What did you do wrong," Brody asked as they walked to their cars.

Matt just looked at him.

* * *

C.J. sat in the diner, with Butterfly, Jason, Maggie and some other people after Parker and the rest of the city council had retreated into the building. Most of those who attended the meeting had gone back home but some had gone to the diner which was serving food on the house in celebration that at least the city council had voted against funding Kilroy's legal defense for the moment. C.J. hoped that Kilroy and Parker wouldn't be able to sway another city council member to vote their way but at least this development had bought them some time.

"What'd you think of the vote," Jason asked while digging into his burger.

"I don't know," C.J. said, "We still don't know how it's going to go but it gives us a breather at least with this issue. We're still going to file the permanent no matter what the city council ultimately decides."

"We're going to have to spend most of tomorrow working on it," Jason said, "And put some time on other days until we are ready to file."

C.J. nodded.

"Will you need my help," Butterfly said, taking a break from her iPod.

"You can help us organize the statements we collected," C.J. said, "But we'll only need you part of the day so you can go back and watch movies with Thea afterward."

"We're watching films from the John Hughes era but skipping _Weird Science_," Butterfly said.

"Butterfly's a film buff. She's seen everything," C.J. said.

"That's cool," Maggie said, "My sister's writes screenplays."

"I've been working on some," Butterfly said, "Just stuff, nothing finished."

"What do you write about," Maggie asked.

Butterfly shrugged.

"Rampant consumerism in the age of zombies who take over high schools," she said, "I think George Romero is really cool, but totally under represented the female point of view in his movies after the first one."

C.J. looked over at Butterfly.

"I didn't know you were so seriously into this," she said, "Does Chris know?"

"Yeah, and she's been cool about it," Butterfly said, "More cool than she's been about Spike."

"I think we should get through as much as we can tomorrow with the declarations that we do have," Jason said.

"Thea said that she'll help with that," C.J. said, "She's got some free time and she can pick them up from her phone tree group."

"That will really help," Jason said, "But we've still got our work cut out for us to hit our deadline."

* * *

Brody and Matt headed into the office and Roy walked toward them.

"Your receptionist is out getting her root canal done but she left this message," he said, handing it to Matt.

"The Begonia…I mean Petunia guy."

"Yes, he's called three times this morning," Roy said, "He says he hired you for his case."

"I told him the other day that I would think about taking his case on," Matt said, "But I don't have the time and truthfully, I don't have the inclination to help a man who's going to end up breaking his wife's heart."

"How do you know that she doesn't have something on the side," Brody interjected.

Matt sighed. Roy looked at his nephew.

"So you're letting your personal sentiments for this gentleman affect your business decision?"

Matt nodded.

"It's my agency, my discretion of which cases to accept," he said, "And I'm turning this one down."

"Good for you, Matlock," Roy said, "I think you've made the right decision. Now you need to contact him and tell him."

"I will," Matt said, "As soon as I finish my workout."

He left to go to his gym.

"I can't believe him," Brody said, "He spent his noon hour with a gorgeous woman who let him down gently and he's going to lift weights?"

"Working out is his way of releasing stress," Roy said, "One of them anyway."

Brody went to pour himself a scotch. Roy cocked his head.

"It's been a rough day," Brody said, "and I'm not sure it's going to improve any time soon."

"The meeting with your contact in the jewelry case didn't go well?"

"The guy froze," Brody said, "He was going to tell us and then he zipped his lips."

"Probably has someone more powerful than you to answer to," Roy said.

"Yeah…well between that and the unfortunately poor timing that truck showed when it splashed through that puddle, it's been one of those days."

"Tomorrow will be better," Roy said, "So Matlock's luncheon with Ginger didn't go well?"

"I don't know, I got there late," Brody said, "But she gave him the 'let's be friends' speech and that never bodes well."

"I don't agree with that," Roy said, "I believe friendship is the strongest foundation for any successful romantic relationship."

"You and Hallmark," Brody said, "But if the spark isn't there, you can't make up for it."

He put his glass down and started to leave.

"I've got to take my kid to ballet practice because the wife's at her mom's," he said, "See you later."

* * *

"Well, I'd better head back to the ranch," C.J. said to Jason, "Bonnie's giving me a ride since Thea's driven the others back."

Jason started to pack up his lap top computer.

"Did you save the files on your thumb drive?"

C.J. nodded.

"We should all have our own copies just in case."

She started to leave, then stopped.

"I might be a little late tomorrow so you and Maggie can meet there and get started without me," she said, winking at Maggie.

Maggie smiled.

"We can do that," she said, picking up her backpack.

After they had packed up their things, they left the diner and began walking back to the City Hall parking lot.

"I'll walk you back and Bonnie to your car," Jason said.

"Thanks."

Bonnie locked up her store and went to join them.

"How's business," C.J. asked.

"Pretty good," Bonnie said, "Some of our crowd decided it was a good time to pick up some groceries."

"We got a lot of work done," C.J. said, "But more to do tomorrow."

"We've got company," Jason said, suddenly.

C.J. looked up and saw a group of men standing between them and their vehicles.

The men approached them.

"At least they're not violating the order if they're here in town," C.J. said.

"Hey you outsiders," one man said, "We're here to give you a message. Walk away from this case right now, if you know what's good for you."

"I live here," Bonnie said, "And I don't know any of you so why don't you take your own advice and leave my friends alone?"

"Can't do that," the man said, "They're standing in the way of progress."

"And a big pay day for your bosses no doubt," C.J. said.

The man grabbed her arm and tried to pull her closer to him.

"Listen lady, it doesn't seem as if you're good at taking advice."

C.J. pulled his arm in back of her and then tossed him over her shoulder on the ground.

"And you seem to have a pattern of underestimating the weaker sex," she said, "Now get up and move along."

The other men approached closer but one look from C.J. sent them back a couple steps. The man got himself off from the ground.

"You're going to regret this," the man said, "You better watch your step."

"So you're the one who's been calling me," C.J. said, "I recognize your voice."

"You'd better hear this then," the man said, "Watch your step."

The men walked away. Bonnie shook her head.

"These guys are on someone's payroll," she said, "And it better not be anyone on the city council."

"I think they're Kilroy's guys," C.J. said, "Unless Parker's working for Kilroy and not just advocating for him."

"We've got them scared," Jason said, "And that might actually be good news for us."

* * *

Matt did his usual weight lifting regime, trying to concentrate on each repetition and not allowing anything to distract him. It usually worked and this time was no different, but it left him exhausted by the time he finished. He wiped his face with a towel and went to the bar to pour himself some juice.

Roy looked at his nephew.

"You know Matlock, working out is very good for releasing stress."

"I know that," he said, "But I do it to keep in shape for my job."

"How was your lunch with Ginger?"

Matt sat down and took a huge sip of his juice.

"She's a very nice lady," he said, "But we've agreed just to be friends and keep it that way."

Roy raised his brows.

"She seemed really into you the night of the exhibit," he said, "And really interested in asking questions to learn more about you."

Matt finished his juice.

"Maybe it's the job that's given her second thoughts, like it has for all the other women," Matt said, "At least it's a little sooner this time than on my wedding day."

"Matlock, I thought you'd put that experience behind you."

"I have," Matt said, "But you're the one that brought up this pattern you see in my relationships with the opposite sex. That maybe they feel they can't compete with my job."

"You do blend your professional and personal life so much that it's not easy to separate the two," Roy said, "And that can leave a woman feeling as if she's being excluded."

"Elizabeth explained that to me before she left," Matt said, "I didn't fully understand what she meant until I had some time to get away and think about it."

"And Ginger…"

"She said my personal life was complicated," Matt said, "Did you know she has Connie Ling's old job?"

"Connie Ling…Wasn't she C.J.'s friend whose death brought down a major Chinese gang?"

"Yeah…Some dirty DEA agent stole some heroin from the gang then tried to sell it back to them," Matt said, "C.J. and I got in the way, because she called C.J. before she was killed for her help."

"Did you share this with Ginger?"

"Yeah…not in great detail, just that Connie and C.J. were friends and C.J. got shot trying to help find her killer."

Roy looked at his glass.

"Oh."

"Oh. What?"

Roy shook his head slightly.

"Nothing…I was thinking how I always wanted to eat at the Karmic Garden and never had the opportunity."

Matt scratched his head.

"Really," he said, "I thought you were going to make some point about Ginger and me."

"No…no," Roy said.

Matt's phone rang. He looked at the phone number on the Caller ID.

"C.J., nice to hear from you. How's life in the Rockies?"

C.J. sat on her couch with her phone, while Butterfly sat on the floor working on her laptop.

"Okay on this end," she said, "We had an eventful meeting today and just got back."

"How's Butterfly doing," Matt asked.

"She's working on some of her writing," C.J. said, "She's been a great help."

"What happened at the meeting?"

"The city council voted against helping the developers with their court battle. The mayor who's in cahoots with the developers vetoed it but the vote needed to override the veto couldn't make up her mind so it's been delayed."

"How does that affect your work?"

"We're still moving forward with the permanent," she said, "Although we haven't got anyone willing to enforce the temporary injunction."

"That doesn't sound good," Matt said, "What does Jed think?"

"He and Thea are getting the ranchers to guard the Wyatt property but it's a 24 thing and they've got their own properties to look after."

"C.J, what about you," Matt said, "How are you doing?"

"Fine, things are going well. There's been a couple things. Nothing we can't handle," she said, "I'm just tired. It's been a long week."

Matt picked up something in her voice.

"What things?"

C.J. sighed, knowing he knew her all too well.

"Some of the developers aren't happy with what we're doing."

"And…"

"It's nothing to worry about," C.J. said, "We've run into this before."

"Do you need any help," Matt said, "Because…"

"No, you've got your plate filled there," C.J. said, "We can handle it on this end."

"Meaning you don't want me there."

"No, not at all," C.J. "I don't need you here. I'd love to see you."

"I'm thinking about it," Matt said, "Maybe I can get my investigators to pick up some extra work and ask Roy to look after them."

"That would be great," C.J. said, "If you can get away."

"I'll see what I can do," Matt said.

"Thanks, how are you doing?"

"Okay, busy like you."

"Is Brody helping you out?"

"Yeah, I've gotten a lot done with his help," Matt said, "Just don't tell him that."

C.J. laughed.

"That's good," she said, "Listen, I got to go but it's been great talking to you."

Matt clicked off his phone.

"How's she doing?"

He looked up and saw his uncle, having forgotten he was there.

"Fine," Matt said, "She's really busy on her case. Says it's going well but I don't think she's telling me everything."

"Probably doesn't want to worry you," Roy said, "Doesn't want you to come riding in and trying to fix everything for her."

* * *

C.J. looked up at Butterfly.

"Are you sure you're okay working with us tomorrow," she said.

Butterfly looked up from her computer.

"Sure, I'll put in a few hours and then Thea and I will make some popcorn and pizza and watch some movies."

"You enjoy spending time with Thea, don't you?"

Butterfly grew thoughtful.

"Yeah, she's very nice and doesn't talk down to me like I'm a little kid."

"She's very blunt sometimes, but it's only because she cares," C.J. said, "She's helped me a lot since I've known her, almost like a mother."

"You didn't have a mother, did you?"

C.J. looked at Butterfly, surprised at the question.

"We all have mothers, but mine died when I was young. Not long after my father was killed."

"I never really knew my parents," Butterfly said, "I only had my sister."

"And then you lost her," C.J. said, "You know it's funny but I spent most of my life growing up praying for a sister. I used to wish for one every time I blew out my birthday candles."

"You didn't get one."

"No, but I had my uncle and I had Julia, my best friend," C.J. said, "She was like a sister."

"And you had Matt," she said.

"Yeah, I did," C.J. said, "He lost his mother too, though he was younger than I was when it happened. He didn't have any brothers or sisters either."

"I have a grandmother," Butterfly said, "And Aunt Chris and Uncle Dan so I guess I'm very lucky."

C.J. nodded.

"Very lucky, to have people who love you so much," she said.

* * *

Outside the cabin, a stranger lurked around the property. He crept up to the window and watched the woman and younger girl sitting inside, unaware of his presence. His orders had been to keep an eye on his quarry and wait for the perfect opportunity to strike, to put an end to any threats faced by those who had hired him permanently.

Suddenly, he saw the girl's head pop up.

Inside the cabin, Butterfly looked around her.

"What's wrong," C.J. asked.

"I thought I heard something outside…"

C.J. got up from where she had been sitting and walked towards a window. The man saw her and moved to the side where he couldn't be seen.

"I don't see anything," she said, "What did you hear?"

"I don't know," Butterfly said, "Branches breaking I think."

C.J. knew that meant that someone could be awfully close to the cabin. She went to get her gun and told Butterfly to remain inside.

"Where are you going," she said.

C.J. put her gun in her pocket but kept her hand on top of it.

"Outside."


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8---I finished the latest chapter. Hope you like it.

* * *

C.J. stepped out of the cabin, carefully closing the door behind her. She switched on her flashlight and looked around into the darkness but saw nothing except several trees and the rover parked in front. She thought she saw shadows move in the brush which grew alongside one of the cabin's walls. She flashed her light over there and flinched when she saw a raccoon's face before it scrambled off.

She exhaled and walked back towards the cabin wall near a window. She shone the light on the ground around her as she stepped and saw several imprints in the moist dirt. Footprints. She carefully placed her shoe in one of them and saw that it was quite a bit larger. She looked closer and noticed several small branches broken adjacent to the prints. That's when she knew that she and Butterfly weren't alone. She looked around but couldn't see any other signs that anyone had just been there. But she could feel him.

She walked to check her car, but except for the crack in the windshield from the other night, it looked fine. Finally, she walked back into the cabin.

Butterfly looked up from where she had returned to working on her computer.

"Is there anyone out there," she asked.

C.J. shook her head. There was no point in alarming Butterfly at this point. Whoever had come was probably gone.

"Just raccoons," she said.

Butterfly's eyes lit up.

"Cool," she said, walking over to look out the window.

"I think I scared most of them off."

C.J. returned to her work but couldn't get her mind off the idea that she and Butterfly had been spied on most likely by whoever had been responsible for the harassing phone calls.

"I really thought I heard something outside," Butterfly said.

"I believe you," C.J. said, "And thanks for telling me."

"Those guys are jerks," Butterfly said, "for breaking the windshield just because things didn't go their way."

"We don't have any proof that they're responsible," C.J. said, "But unofficially, I agree with you."

Butterfly moved over to sit with her on the sofa. She still looked nervous, though trying not to show it.

"Are you scared?"

C.J. looked at the younger girl and thought about her answer.

"A little," she said, "Mostly about what's going to happen in court. I always feel that way before I have to appear on a case. After a few minutes, it usually passes."

"You never look like you get scared."

C.J. smiled.

"In these types of situations, you can feel it but you can't always show it," she said, "And believe me, I've been much more scared at other things in my life so this doesn't seem like much to be afraid of."

Butterfly nodded.

"Like what happened to you last year."

C.J. put her arm around the girl's shoulder.

"Yeah," C.J. said, quietly, "But the important thing is that you can't let your fears run your life."

* * *

Matt watched as Brody paced back and forth in front of him. Greg, another investigator who also used to work for the LAPD watched as well from the table where they were sitting inside a sports bar.

"So you don't want to take the Fortworth case," Brody said, "That's cool. It could have given us some exposure but okay…"

"I agree with Matt," Greg said, taking another sip from his beer, "The guy might not deserve to be blackmailed but he made his bed, he's got to lie in it. He can always go to the police or hire someone else."

An older man walked up to the table bringing more chicken wings.

"Houston, who do you like in the baseball game?"

"Angels by four," Matt said.

The man penciled into his little notebook.

"By the way, thanks for finding my kid's stamp collection," the man said, "He never thought he'd see it again."

Matt smiled.

"No problem."

"The wings are on the house," the man said before leaving.

Both investigators looked at Matt.

"Stamp collection?" Brody asked.

"Someone snatched it right off of him on his way to 'show and tell' at school and tried to sell it," Matt said. "He's only 8."

"Tough world," Greg said, shaking his head, "I hate it when our kids have to experience it."

"That's why I lock mine up in the house when I'm not there," Brody said, "And my daughters aren't dating until they graduate from high school."

Greg laughed.

"Yeah right," he said, "I tried that with mine. Didn't happen."

"Yours married cops," Brody said, "So I guess it all worked out in the end."

"What about you, Matt," Greg asked.

"He's too busy messing up his social calendar with his work to get down to business in that area," Brody said.

Matt sighed and looked up from his ledger.

"Can we get back to talking about these cases that are still pending?"

Greg took another long sip from his beer bottle.

"I closed out three this week," he said, "I submitted the paperwork on them today."

"I saw that," Matt said, "That's great work especially on the extortion case at the zoo."

"Isn't that the one where someone threatened the primates' handler," Brody said, "Who did it?"

"Inside job," Greg said, "She had been involved with the guy who oversaw the croc pen but he broke it off with her because she chose the apes over him."

"That's a weird one," Brody said, dipping into the wings.

Matt picked up his pen.

"Did you forward the information to Hoyt?"

Greg nodded.

"They arrested the croc guy this afternoon," he said, "They also discovered the whereabouts of that alligator that somehow disappeared in transit on its way to the zoo. The keeper was wearing what's left of the poor creature on his feet."

"Cold bastard," Brody said, "I hope they put him away."

Matt raised his brow.

"Lucky C.J. wasn't here to handle that case and found out about it," Matt said, shaking his head, "She would have fed him to the crocs after she was done with him."

"I can imagine," Brody said, "but she's safely out of range and in the Rockies doing the good work."

Matt paused, looking at both men.

"Speaking of the Rockies and…C.J., I might be going on a vacation."

Both men dropped their jaws at his words.

* * *

C.J. picked up the phone.

"Hello?"

A familiar voice responded.

"You know you shouldn't be putting in such late hours because it's not going to do you any good."

"What? Who is this?"

"You and your lawyer friends didn't drop the case like you were told to do."

"No, and we don't plan to respond to your threats," she said, "We're taking this all the way if we need to, to win."

"That's too bad," he said, "You're such a pretty woman but you won't be nearly as pretty when you're dead."

He hung up.

She held the phone in her hands. How did the caller know she was still working? She got up and walked to the window to look outside into the darkness for the second time that night. She stayed there for quite a while as her coffee grew cold on the table.

* * *

"You're going on vacation," the two men said in unison.

Brody slammed his beer bottle on the table, causing people at nearby tables to look at them.

"Just for a week or so," Matt said, "That's why I called you both here to meet with you. You are my two most experienced investigators."

"Oh man, this is great," Brody said, "Your business will be safe in our hands and running smooth as satin when you get back."

"I think that's silk," Greg said.

"Whatever," Brody said, "We won't let you down, Matt and you really do need to go off and relax somewhere for a while."

"It's only going to be a little while," Matt said, "I'm not taking off and handing the agency over to you for very long and officially, my uncle will be in charge."

"So when you taking off," Brody said, looking at Greg who shrugged.

"Day after tomorrow," Matt said, "It's will give me time to clear some remaining inventory forms on the jewelry and tie some things up."

"That's a quick change of heart," Brody said, "I really think the time off is going to be good for you."

"Don't think I'm going to go easy on you when I come back."

"We'd be disappointed if you did," Brody said, "Have you told C.J.?"

"I'm going to give her a call," Matt said, leaving the table.

* * *

"I got another one too, Jason," C.J. said.

She sat on her sofa trying to get some research done on her lap top when the phone rang again. Jason had called her about the latest threatening phone call he had received which was similar to her own.

"I'm getting worried," Jason said, "I didn't want to scare Maggie but I'm starting to wonder if we're safe here."

"I tried to call the Denver office of the FBI this morning," she said, "But they haven't called me back."

"Hopefully, when we file the permanent," Jason said, "Whoever's doing this will back off."

"It's got to be Kilroy," C.J. said, "Look, I'll check with the FBI before I go to the diner."

"Okay, see you tomorrow," Jason said, "And be careful."

"You too."

C.J. got off the phone and lay back on the couch.

* * *

Matt stepped outside of the sports bar and took out his phone, to call C.J.

She picked up.

"Hello, Houston is that you?"

"Yes it is," he said, "Did I catch you at a bad time?"

"No…not at all," she said, "How you doing?"

"Pretty good, what about you?"

"Tired…otherwise good. Is there anything wrong?"

"No, I just got to thinking that I might fly out in a couple of days and visit."

He heard a pause on the other end.

"You don't have to," she said, "We can handle things here."

"I know I don't have to. I want to come out," he said, "If it's okay with you."

"Sure," she said, "I'd love to see you. So would Butterfly."

"I've got some work to finish up tomorrow, but I should be able to leave the following morning."

"That'll be great," she said, "I look forward to seeing you."

"Me too," he said, "Good night."

* * *

Matt walked to the edge of the sidewalk where it merged onto the beach. He could hear the waves crashing in the distance. He took off his shoes and socks and walked across the sand. It had cooled considerably since the sun set but still felt comfortable underneath his feet.

He looked out toward where the tides drew in and saw her sitting on a log, her white dress standing in contrast to the darkness around her. He walked over to join her.

"Seat taken?"

She looked up and shook her head and he sat down. Silence fell between them but not in an uncomfortable way.

"So this is where your walk led you," he said.

"This is my favorite spot on this beach," she said, "It's so quiet at night, and beautiful. We don't get many stars out here but there's the moon."

"It is beautiful," he said, "Brody told me about the grand jury hearing."

She turned to look at him, her hair framing her face.

"I'm sorry I didn't know about it until this morning," she said, "and it lasted most of the day. I took the first plane out here when I was done."

"I know you would," he said, "Don't worry about it. I'm just glad you're here now."

"I had a present for you, but I left it back in Houston."

"You're being here is enough," he said, "So how'd it go?"

She looked out at the ocean.

"It went," she said, "I don't know what the end result was or what will happen."

He stroked her hair back off her face.

"I mean, how did it go?"

She paused, then took a deep breath releasing it slowly.

"I always think that I've finally got past it, but then there are days like today I felt like I was back where I started."

"I think that's to be expected," Matt said, "When you testify to something you've experienced, you're reliving it."

"I know that," she said, "I tell that to people who are witnesses in cases I handle all the time. But it's different to go through it yourself."

"C.J., you've worked very hard to get through this and build your life back again," he said, "Harder than anyone I've known. Harder than I ever could."

Her eyes glistened then she shrugged.

"I know," she said, "Most days I know that, just not today."

He put his arm around her shoulders.

"Then I'll sit here with you until today passes."

"But it's your birthday," she said, "You should be happy and having a good time with your friends."

"I had a great party, lots of excitement," he said, "But it's nice to sit and wind down from all of that with my best friend."

She looked at him and smiled, then rested her head on his shoulder.

* * *

She woke up, and saw that morning had come, as evidenced through the sun shining through her window. She could hear footsteps down the hallway and into the kitchen. Then she heard a knock on her door.

"Come in," she said, resting back on her arms.

"I made some eggs if you'd like some," Butterfly said, "The first couple broke but the second batch came out fine."

"Thanks Butterfly, that's great."

She got out of bed and followed Butterfly into the kitchen. Butterfly grabbed some toast that she had also made and put it on two plates.

"So what time are we going into town?"

"About an hour," C.J. said, "Thanks for coming with me. I won't need your services all day."

"No problem," Butterfly said, "Thea's going to come pick me up in the afternoon."

"I'll probably be back late, so maybe you'd like to stay at the ranch house overnight?"

Butterfly bit into her toast.

"We're already planning on making it a sleepover because we won't get to _Pretty in Pink_ until after midnight so no problem."

C.J. finished her breakfast and went to shower and get dressed in some jeans and a long-sleeved tee-shirt. She and Butterfly gathered their things and headed to the rover.

* * *

Matt sat at his desk, going through the final drafts of the invoices to send to the police department for the jewelry seized as evidence the day before.

Roy entered his office and sat down in a chair.

"I thought you were going to the concert with Sophia at Newport Beach," Matt said.

"We're going to pick up a lunch basket and then head off," Roy said, "What about you?"

Matt gestured to the papers on his desk.

"I'm going to finish up my paperwork…" he said.

Roy looked at his nephew and shook his head.

"Then I'm going to get ready to take my plane to Colorado tomorrow morning."

Roy looked up.

"So you've decided to take a vacation?"

"Yes I have," Matt said, "I'm going to need you to look after things while I'm gone. I let Brody and Greg think they're in charge but told them to report to you."

Roy nodded.

"I see," he said, "Between the three of us and your other employees, the agency will be in good hands."

Matt sipped his coffee.

"Good," he said, "It' going to be nice to get out of the city for a while."

"How did C.J. take the news," Roy asked.

"She said she was looking forward to my arrival," Matt said.

"How's her case going?"

"Fine," Matt said, "They seem to have things going their way so far."

"It was on the news last night," Roy said, "Pretty contentious issue among the residents but then those involving developers trying to enforce change in areas where people like the way things are, often become that way."

"How contentious can it be," Matt said, "It's just a small town."

"There've been protests at the City Hall," Roy said, "And those are just the ones we know about."

"Well, that's the nature of those types of cases," Matt said, "Emotions get all stirred up like dust on a prairie when you start talking about people's land and all the money involved."

* * *

Butterfly sorted through the declarations that had been submitted to the legal team by the area residents. Occasionally she would thumb through one document and read it.

"Wow, I didn't know the Bakers had lived on their land since the 1890s," she said, before putting it down.

"Many of these families have had the land in their families for generations," C.J. said, "So it's very precious to them, something to work with and then give to their children."

"Aunt Chris is thinking about buying some land and building a house on it."

"Well, now that she and Dan are starting a family, they probably need a bigger house."

"I think they should," Butterfly said, "With plenty of land for kids to play on and for animals to run around free."

"Like Thea's ranch?"

Butterfly nodded.

"I agree with you about that," C.J. said, "It's harder to do these days with all the development going on outside most city limits but there still is good land out there."

"Would you do that some day?"

"Maybe..."

Jason tossed down another document.

"I think that's what we have for now," he said.

"Thea's going to drop another stack over when she picks Butterfly up," C.J. said.

"Every one of them is necessary," Jason said, "The judge needs to know that the developer's proposed report might bring in tax revenue but it's going to adversely impact families that have lived in this area for generations."

"Houston's flying up tomorrow."

Jason looked up from his paperwork.

"Why the sudden change in plans?"

"He's got some time off and is coming up to take a breather," C.J. said.

"So he can help us then on the investigative side?"

C.J. hedged.

"He's here to relax," she said, "He's been under a lot of stress from work and needs to get away."

"He'll be walking into a hornets' nest whether he likes it or not," Jason said, "Whether you like it or not."

Butterfly interjected.

"Well, I think it's awesome," she said, "He's promised to take me fishing."

"He doesn't have to get involved in this legal fight," C.J. said.

"If he sees that you're involved, I would guess that he'll involve himself."

"I'll make it clear to him that we're doing fine," C.J. said.

"We could use his skills," Jason said, "You and Jed have done a lot of the land surveying but you need help."

"The other ranchers are trying but they have their own places to take care of not to mention the guard duty over the area covered by the injunction."

"The law enforcement should be enforcing that."

"Yeah they should," C.J. said, "But we both know that's not going to be happening."

He nodded then looked at her.

"So what exactly is the relationship between the two of you?"

She looked back at him, surprised.

Maggie walked up with another stack of documents.

"I got these from City Hall," she said, "Fortunately, Parker's aide's on our side."

"These are the histories of land transactions in this region," C.J. said, thumbing through them, "This should be useful. Thanks Maggie."

"How the declarations going," Maggie asked.

"Great," C.J. said, "We're waiting for some more that are coming."

"We need everything useful we can get," Jason said, "We need to get this all to Denver."

* * *

Brody dropped by the office.

"Are you faxing those invoices over to the LAPD?"

Matt looked up at him and nodded.

"Greg and I are headed out to do the stakeout at the art museum," Brody said.

"Not where Ginger works," Matt said.

"There's a meeting taking place between a wife of one of our clients and the guy she works with. Greg's out there already with the camera."

"Camera," Matt said, "You know you can't take flash photos around some of those older paintings."

"Relax, it's digital video," Brody said, "Besides, they're meeting in the sculpture garden."

"What case is this," Matt said.

"The guy who's the deejay of that popular all-night show," Brody said, "That's the problem, he works all night, she works all day. Ships passing through the night and she's thinking about jumping ship."

"You know we don't usually take cases like this one."

"It's my wife's favorite radio personality," Brody said, "She threatened to divorce me if I didn't help him."

"We're going to have to have a talk about business when I get back," Matt said, "in the meantime, I think we'd both better head to the museum."

"Why, you want to see Ginger again," Brody said, "After she just dropped you down a notch on her social registry."

"Ginger's a nice lady," Matt said, "And doesn't deserve to have her museum turned upside down."

He started walking.

"Hey, Matt wait…"

* * *

Thea arrived at the diner to drop off some more declarations and pick up Butterfly before heading off to the video store to pick up their films for the evening. Maggie took the box and began sorting through them.

"Why don't you take a break and come with us," Thea said.

C.J. looked back at Jason and Maggie.

"Sure," she said as the three of them headed out of the diner to the video store, which was inside a building about the size of a trailer stacked wall to wall with DVDs. A teenaged girl who worked there sat on the steps, reading a magazine.

"I'll go get them," Butterfly said, and dashed inside.

"So how are things going with your case today," Thea said, as they waited outside.

"Very well," she said, "Those declarations will really help."

"We'll be able to get more after next week."

"We have to submit our case in writing a couple days before oral arguments on the injunction in Denver."

"Do you think you'll be ready," Thea said.

"We've still got a lot to do but between the three of us, we should make it."

"What about those threats you've been getting?"

C.J. sighed.

"The FBI can't send anybody out," she said, "If we're still having problems, we can stop by the Denver office when we're there."

Thea shook her head.

"I don't have a good feeling about this," she said, "I don't think Kilroy's going to stop at anything to get his project built."

"If the court rules our way, it will be a lot tougher for him."

"But that might just him more desperate," Thea said, "And desperate men do crazy things."

"We'll be fine," C.J. said, "We might be working late tonight."

"Stick together while you're in town and call me when you get home," Thea said.

"I will," C.J. said, "Houston's flying in tomorrow morning…just to visit."

Thea brightened.

"That's wonderful," she said, "It'll be great to see him again."

"He's just here to get away from the stress of his work in L.A. not to do any investigative work"

Thea looked at the younger woman.

"That's fine," she said, "There's plenty to be done on the ranch and that's a great way to relax."

"That will be good," C.J. said,"I'm worried about him."

Thea put her hand on C.J.'s shoulder.

"Would you like to talk about it later, over some tea?"

C.J. looked at Thea.

"Maybe."

* * *

Matt and Brody entered into the museum's garden and walked down the brick path that separated the perfectly manicured flower beds of roses in a variety of hues and grass that looked like it had been trimmed by a razor. Several gardeners tended the flowers and looked up to see the two men wandering in their midst.

A magnificent fountain served as the centerpiece of the garden before the entrance into the sculpture garden.

Greg set up shop just inside the entrance, behind a statue that has been sculpted by Rodin with his camera ready to go but his targets hadn't yet arrived.

"Oooh, that's "The Kiss" but not the original," Brody said, pointing at the statue, "Rodin had this real appreciation for female…figures."

"He's a guy," a voice came from behind them.

They turned around and saw Ginger who had walked up behind them.

"So are you here taking an art appreciation tour of our Rodin collection or you on a case?"

"Maybe both," Brody said, "Why limit yourself to just one activity?"

"It's a case," Matt said, "One of my investigators is doing surveillance on a wife of one of my clients."

"The deejay on the "From Darkness 'til Dawn" radio show," Brody added.

"Oh yes, I've heard of him," Ginger said, "So his wife's cheating on him?"

"We don't…Oh wait here she comes," Brody said.

They watched as a nicely dressed woman walked up to the bench in a small courtyard and sat down. She reached into her bag and pulled out a book.

"Subtle entrance, I like that," Brody said.

"I thought you didn't handle domestic cases," Ginger said.

"This is an exception," Matt said, looking at Brody, "It's not the rule."

"Here comes the man," Brody said, looking at a young man walking towards the woman who seemed not to notice him. At least not at first.

The man approached the same bench and the woman looked up at him.

"He's telling her that the view is nice and then if the seat is taken…"

Both Matt and Ginger looked at Brody.

Suddenly, they noticed that while Greg lifted his camera, he caught his foot on a branch next to the statue.

"Uh oh, this isn't good," Brody said, watching Greg crash down on the ground, his camera scattering and landing just next to a heeled shoe of the woman. Both the man and the woman looked down at the camera and then at Greg who was trying to stand up. The man walked over to him, one of his hands balled up in a fist.

"Definitely not good."

The man grabbed Greg and pulled him by his collar. Greg pulled away and after the man threw a punch, they started wrestling, bumping against the statue.

"My Rodin," Ginger said.

Then the men fell on the ground and both Matt and Brody ran over there to pull the man off of Greg. Greg kicked the man off of him sending him backward into Brody and Matt. Unfortunately, the fountain caught Brody, and he fell into it splashing water everywhere. The woman got off the bench and started yelling at them.

"What the hell are you doing," she said.

"Is that your boyfriend," Brody said, climbing out of the fountain.

The woman crossed her arms.

"No you idiot, he's my accountant."

"What?"

The woman pushed Brody away.

"I missed the tax deadline and needed an extension," she said, "He just wanted to run over the final figures with me."

"In a museum?"

"Brody, let's just let these two go and call it a day, okay," Matt said.

"Look, we thought this would be a quiet place to review the return before sending it in," the woman said, brushing the dirt off of her accountant's suit, "Did my husband hire you?"

"We can't tell you that," Brody said, "Investigator, client confidentiality."

"Oh so he did, did he!"

Matt tried to intervene.

"Look, I'm sure we can settle this like…"

She threw a punch at Brody but instead hit Matt squarely in the eye.

* * *

C.J. returned to the diner after Thea left and saw Maggie sitting at the table alone.

"Where's Jason," she said.

"He went to get some fresh air," Maggie said, "He'll be back. It's turning into a long day."

"Sure is," C.J. said, "We'll work for a few more hours and then call it a day."

"It'll be night by then."

C.J. laughed.

"The life of an attorney means never ending workdays," she said.

"Did you always want to be a lawyer?"

C.J. paused.

"Ever since I was a young girl, it's all I ever wanted to be."

"And you've become a very successful one," Maggie said, "I thought about going back to law school. I did a semester before I got married."

"You were married?"

Maggie nodded.

"Not too long, well longer than I should have been," she said, "But I'd love to go back."

"You should," C.J. said, "You'd make an incredible lawyer."

Maggie smiled.

"Thanks, but it must wreak havoc on your social life," she said, "Have you ever been married?"

"No I haven't," C.J. said, "I've come close a couple times but never did it. I haven't always made the best choices in men."

"Join the crowd," Maggie said, "There should be a sisterhood of women who fell in love with jerks. I'd be president of it but…"

"You really like Jason, don't you?"

"I think we both know which one of us he…likes."

"He's very attractive and he's a nice guy," C.J. said, "But I'm not interested in a relationship with him. If it comes up, I'll tell him so."

"Why aren't you interested," Maggie said, "He's a great guy."

C.J. looked down for a minute.

"I know he is, and maybe there might have been a time," C.J. said, "But I have my own baggage to deal with and I think if he knew about it, he'd walk away."

"I'm sorry," Maggie said.

"Don't be," C.J. said, "Life's filled with good things too."

* * *

Ginger passed Matt a makeshift ice pack to put over his eye.

"That should stop the swelling in its tracks," she said.

He took it and gingerly placed it on his face.

"Thanks," he said, "I'm sorry about what happened. I'll have a talk with Brody and Greg."

"It ended well," she said, "The deejay and his wife are getting a hefty tax refund this year according to the accountant."

Matt smiled.

"What are you thinking about?"

"I'm wondering if the agency will be in safe hands while I'm out of town."

The news startled her.

"You leaving for work?"

"No, vacation," Matt said, "I'm going to Colorado to visit C.J."

"That's great," Ginger said, "I'm sure she'll be glad to see you."

"I hope so," Matt said, "We haven't seen each other in several months."

"Whatever it is, I'm sure it won't matter when you get off the plane," Ginger said, winking at him, "We women are funny that way."

* * *

C.J. sat with Jason in the diner while Maggie went on a quick errand. She looked at her watch.

"We should pack up and get going when she gets back," she said, "We're all tired."

"I'm glad that we're finally alone," Jason said, looking at her.

She stopped writing and looked up at him.

"We've been alone before," she said.

He smiled.

"I think you know I'm very attracted to you," he said, "I'd like to see you…socially."

"We're working together," C.J. said, "I don't mix work with pleasure and besides we live thousands of miles apart."

"How about when this case is filed away and done with, maybe get together for a few days in Denver," Jason said,"You're a beautiful woman and I really like you."

She looked at him for a moment.

"Look, I find you very attractive too and part of me is tempted…"

"Part of you?"

"But there's a woman in this equation I like and respect who I don't want to hurt."

"Maggie?"

C.J. nodded.

"You're a very nice man, Jason, and I've met a few of those too in my life," she said, "But you don't see what's right in front of you because you're too busy looking everywhere else."

Jason remained silent for a while.

"I see…well Maggie's very pretty and smart, a hard worker, but she's a friend and I've always believed it's best to keep your friends apart from your lovers."

"That's not a bad rule," C.J. said, "But she has strong feelings for you and I'm not going to be the cause of any pain for her."

He nodded.

"I don't want to hurt her," he said, "I really do care about her."

"My advice to you would be to take a closer look at those who care for you, who look out for you and really appreciate them," C.J. said, "Then who knows, maybe someday you can build from there or at least be honest to them about your true feelings."

"So I guess you and I will be...friends?"

C.J. started to say something but instead, nodded.

* * *

Two men sat in a pickup truck watching the diner while a third one walked towards a rover in the parking lot.

"They should be leaving pretty soon," the driver of the pickup said.

"Is this something that you really want to do," the other asked.

"We're just following orders from our boss," the driver said, "and he said to remove these outsiders from the equation no matter what the cost."


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9--I've done another installment. I hope it makes sense being fueled by Ghirardelli Dark Chocolate with toffee bits dipped in some coffee! I hope you like it!

* * *

"It won't start," C.J. said from inside the rover, "I know it's got a full tank of gas."

Jason opened up the hood.

"Is the battery working all right," he said, looking inside but not really sure what to look for.

"It was earlier," C.J. said, "I haven't been having any problems with anything."

"I've got some cables," Jason said, "We can try to charge it if it's the battery."

"I don't think it's the battery," she said.

Maggie walked up to them with some coffee.

"It's a bit chilly tonight," she said, "Drink up."

Jason took a cup.

"I think I need some brandy."

She looked at him and smiled.

"Maybe later."

C.J. tried to start her car again, not expecting anything to happen and nothing did.

* * *

Matt put his suitcase on the bed in his beach house and started packing. He had just gotten home after a long day spent finishing up paperwork. After returning from the debacle at the art museum, he had sat down and worked through dinner, actually getting a lot done. His eye smarted but the bruising didn't look too bad. Ginger's attentiveness and ice pack had worked.

He had left instructions with how he expected the agency to be run in his absence with Greg and Brody who had returned to the office after changing his clothes for a change. Matt suppressed a chuckle at the sight remembering how many times he had been in Brody's shoes. The ex-cop had his faults for sure but he was a crack investigator and a solid backup to Matt when he needed one. No one could replace C.J. as his partner but Brody hadn't tried. And if Brody went off on some tear through the city, Greg had enough sense to rein him in and if Greg couldn't, then Uncle Roy surely would.

Still he worried…

His own phone rang. He found it among the pile of clothes and picked it up.

"Hello,"

"Hi Matt, I hope I didn't catch you too late."

"It's never too late for you to call, Thea," he said, "How are things going?"

"I'm sitting here with Butterfly watching a movie marathon and eating lots of cheese popcorn."

"Homemade, I hope," Matt said, "I guess C.J. told you I'm flying in tomorrow."

"Yes she did," Thea said, "She's out working late in town with the lawyers and probably won't be back home for a while. I told her to call me when she gets back."

"She's been working really hard?"

"Mostly this week," Thea said, "They have some briefs due in court coming up and a hearing next week. But I'll make sure she's got some down time."

Matt chuckled.

"Good luck," he said, "Once she gets her teeth into something, she's not going to let go of it."

"This hasn't been an easy case, Matt," Thea said, "I'll explain more when you get here. Just hurry on up and I'll make sure there's plenty of food waiting when you get in."

"How's she doing, otherwise?"

"She's doing well," Thea said, "She's got a lot on her mind though and she's worried about you."

"I'm doing fine," Matt said, "I've just been very busy on this end. It will be great to get away for a while."

After he hung up, he continued with his packing. He would wake up early, go to the airport to finish prepping his plane and then take off. Three hours later, he would be in Colorado and on his way to the ranch and among other things, Thea's cooking which would fortify him for whatever else waited his arrival.

He knew everyone was worried about him because he had worked nonstop for most of the past year trying to get his agency back on track after his long absence. He hoped that his decision to take a spell to relax and recharge himself had placated them because everything really was fine if people would just stop asking. However, as he tossed in some pairs of socks, he thought that rarely did it ever happen that his vacations went according to plan. This time, he vowed, things would be different. He'd do some riding, take Butterfly fishing like he promised and stick to working on the ranch if needed, not on cases. And hopefully despite her busy schedule, he'd spend time with C.J. He thought about calling her but realized it was getting late where she was staying.

So he continued putting items in his suitcase, looking ahead to rest and relaxation. Getting away from the grind of his job would allow him to think about his future and where everything in it fit together. No danger or risk in doing that amid the breathtaking beauty of the Rockies.

Still, he packed his gun in his carryon. He never traveled anywhere without it anyway, and you could never be sure when you might need it. Experience had taught him that.

* * *

"The car's not going to start," C.J. said, getting out of it.

"Too bad there's no triple A out here," Jason said, putting the hood down.

"Yeah," she said, "No cab service either."

"We can give you a lift back to the ranch," he said, "Or you can spend the night here."

"Well, Butterfly is spending the night at the ranch house," C.J. said, "So I could stay in town."

"Well, then it's set," Jason said, "I'm sure you can get a room at the motel."

They started walking.

"No wait," C.J. said, stopping, "I've got to get back to the cabin. I've got an early day tomorrow on the ranch."

"Are you sure," Jason said.

C.J. looked at Maggie who stood watching and nodded.

"If you could just give me a lift back to the ranch, I'll appreciate it."

"Okay sure thing," Jason said, "Maggie, do you want to come or stay here?"

"I'll come," she said.

"Then let's get going," he said, looking at the sky, "I think it's going to start raining".

* * *

Matt answered the door. His uncle walked in his living room.

"It's awfully late," Matt said, "I've got to get to the airport early."

"I talked to Brody and Greg," Roy said, "I told them how it was going to be and they're going to be just fine."

"Thanks, Uncle Roy," he said, "I trust them, even if they go off in some strange directions sometimes. Their records as cops speak for themselves."

"You need this vacation Matlock," Roy said, "You need to get away and relax for a while."

"Look, that's what everyone's been telling me," Matt said, "But I'm fine and the agency's going to be fine."

"What about you and C.J.?"

Matt paused.

"That's what I don't know about," he said, "I think I hurt her feelings and I didn't mean to do that."

"I don't know what happened, but you need to work it out," Roy said, "You've been friends for far too long."

"We ares still friends," Matt said, "Best friends."

"You need to remember that when you talk to her."

"I know that," Matt said, "It's not that simple."

"You want to make life more complicated than it has to be?"

"More complicated," Matt said, "I'm trying to figure out if I want to keep my agency going, if not, what I want to do next…"

"You thinking of selling the agency?"

"I don't know," Matt said, "I did some thinking when I was in the hospital."

"Where you wound up with pneumonia because you worked yourself into the ground," Roy reminded him.

"I'm fine now," Matt said.

Roy nodded slowly watching his nephew pace.

"C.J. spent three days at your bedside, after flying out from Texas until you stabilized. They couldn't kick her out," Roy said, "She offered to help you with your agency."

"I couldn't accept that," Matt said, "I knew what she would be giving up and I couldn't be responsible for that."

"Did you explain that to her?"

"Well…I decided to hire some more investigators to help with the caseload."

Roy sighed.

"You're so thick sometimes for someone who inherited his mother's smarts but his father's stubbornness."

Matt turned around to face his uncle.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

Roy shook his head and walked away into the kitchen.

* * *

Jason drove down the darkened highway. Rain drops started hitting the windshield and he turned on the windshield wipers.

"We got a tremendous amount of work done today," he said, "It shouldn't be so bad from this point out until our date in Denver."

"I hope the judge is in a good mood," C.J. said, "That hearing's going to be critical."

"I haven't been to Denver in a while," Maggie said, "It might be great to spend a couple of days there seeing the sights."

Jason grew silent and C.J. looked out the window.

"Maybe we'll do that," Jason said.

"Isn't your friend coming to town," Maggie asked.

"Yeah, he's flying in tomorrow," C.J. said, "It's been a while since I've seen him."

"He's coming out to help?"

C.J. shook her head.

"Just to rest and relax," she said, "He was ill earlier this year and he never took time off to recover. Just went back to work."

"This is a beautiful place," Maggie said, "Plenty of ways to relax and if he's feeling better, maybe he could join us in Denver."

"We'll be very busy while we're there," Jason said.

C.J. looked up at the mirror and saw headlights coming up behind them. She looked behind her and saw rapidly approaching light which blinded her.

* * *

Matt looked up for a moment while zipping his suitcase.

Roy watched him.

"What is it?"

Matt shook his head.

"Never mind," he said.

"So you will spend some time on this trip deciding what your future holds," Roy said.

"I won't make any major decisions either way without consulting you and the other investigators," Matt said.

"What do you want to do?"

Matt sat on his bed.

"I love my work," he said, "But I haven't had a case that's grabbed me for a while now. I think I need to change my focus and remember why I started doing this work."

Roy cocked his head and looked at his nephew for a while.

"You thinking about leaving L.A. and moving back to Texas?"

* * *

C.J. sat on the examining table after struggling to put on her jacket. The attending physician had advised her that she had a mild concussion and should stay overnight for observation. She naturally refused to do so and he shook his head, muttering something about being able to give medical advice but being able to force someone to take it. She shut him out but then Matt started in about how worried he was about her and that she was lucky to be alive. She had rolled her eyes at him even though it hurt and said the accident had been no accident and that two men looking like Laurel and Hardy had pushed her off the road.

She didn't think her best friend believed her until she said that the names rattled off by the men as they walked past her matched those of two of her college sorority sisters. Then he started paying closer attention to her recollection of what had been admittedly a rather bizarre experience.

"Houston, those two men said something else," she said, "They had just one week left to…get the other two."

He looked at her.

"C.J. just how many more sorority sisters do you have living in L.A?"

"Two," she said, "Maureen Flanders and Carol La Master," she said, "Their phone numbers are back at the office."

"All right," he said, "I'll get in touch with all of your sorority sisters and make sure everything's all right."

She sighed.

"Just do me a favor," he said, "Just stay here until the security men get here."

She nodded.

He paused, looking at her.

"Thank you," he said.

She narrowed her eyes.

"For what,"

"For not letting them kill you," he said, before kissing her mouth gently.

* * *

C.J. woke up, lying on her stomach, feeling something dripping down her face and the first thought in her mind were those words that Matt had said to her several years ago. She struggled to move, but pain answered her efforts from all over her body. She finally lifted her head several inches and images swam into view but they weren't clear. She saw what she thought was a glass window pushed inward and the door warped into shapeless metal.

She heard moaning from the front seat which was several feet lower than where she lie.

"Jason…Maggie," she called.

"C.J…?"

She recognized Maggie's voice, which sounded as jagged as the metal surrounding her. She couldn't see the other woman.

"Are you hurt," C.J. called out.

"I can't move my legs," Maggie said, "Jason… He's not moving at all."

C.J. took a deep breath which hurt her chest.

"Where are we," she said, "What happened?"

She tried to remember but she couldn't think back through her hazy recollections when something had gone horribly wrong.

"We…must have gone off the road," Maggie said.

"Where's Jason," C.J. asked.

"He's here but he's not moving," Maggie said, "I don't know if he's breathing."

"Can you check to see," C.J. said.

"I…I don't know," Maggie said, "I'm pinned in here."

C.J. got one hand free and pushed a piece of metal off of her.

"I think I can move a little," she said, closing her eyes against a sudden eruption of pain.

"The windows must be broken," Maggie said, "I can feel the cold air and rain coming in."

"At least you can feel it," C.J. said, "That's a good sign."

C.J. struggled to move, then felt the car shift beneath her.

"What was that," Maggie said.

"We must have gone down into the gorge," she said, "That means we were approaching Jamboree road."

"We could still slide down further then," Maggie said.

C.J. remained still, even keeping her breath shallow, trying to think about what to do.

* * *

Thea looked at Butterfly, asleep on her bed. She had passed out, a few minutes ago with a bowl of popcorn still in her hands. She had removed it, then placed a quilt over the girl while she slept. She left the bedroom to go get a cup of tea in the kitchen.

She looked at the clock. It read 3 a.m. and still no phone call from C.J. that she had arrived home safely. In the kitchen, Thea picked up the phone and called C.J.'s cell phone and the phone at the cabin but received no response from either, except that it was out of range. Maybe C.J. had gotten back really late and hadn't wanted to wake her but as the hours had passed, Thea grew more concerned.

She picked up the phone to call Jed.

"He…llo," Jed said.

"I'm sorry to wake you Jed, but I'm worried about C.J.," she said.

Jed sat up in bed, careful not to wake Bonnie up.

"She hasn't gotten back yet," he said.

"She hasn't called," Thea said, "Because of everything that's been going on, I asked her to do so when she arrived back."

"She should be back from town by now," Jed said, "I'm going to get up and get over to the cabin and check on her. I'll call you from there."

"Thanks, Jed," Thea said and hung up. Then she went to the stove to heat up some water to prepare coffee, knowing that she wouldn't be able to sleep until she knew C.J. was home and safe.

* * *

C.J. gingerly sat up and tried to move slowly to where she could see the front seat, willing the car not to shift its position from where it had landed. Darkness still surrounded them, and the chill began to permeate the inside of the car but the raining had slowed. She could feel it occasionally hit her face, which she discovered she had cut on some glass. One of her cheekbones smarted and felt very tender when she touched it.

She looked over the top of the seat and saw that metal and glass had intruded into where Jason and Maggie had been sitting.

The other woman looked up at her.

"I think something's wedged into my leg."

"Then you better sit still," C.J. said, trying to shift her position to be able to see Jason.

"I tried to call 911 on my cell but I couldn't get through," Maggie said.

"Someone's going to come looking for us when they notice we're missing," C.J. said, "But it might be a while."

"I don't know if Jason has that long," Maggie said, "He's not responding."

C.J. reached over and saw him sitting back limply in his seat but like Maggie, he had been pushed back by the dashboard and in his case, the steering wheel. She did reach over with her hand to feel for a pulse on his neck which was sticky with blood.

"How is he?"

"I feel something but it's very weak," C.J. said, looking back at his ashen skin, "He might be bleeding inside."

"I can't reach him," Maggie said.

"I'll try to see how close I can get," C.J. said, "But I have to move slowly."

She inched forward over the seat, taking care not to bump her head and testing the car for its reaction. When she felt pain, she just closed her eyes until it passed and then continued.

* * *

Matt woke up with a start and looked at his watch. It was five a.m so he got out of bed and headed to the shower. As he passed, he didn't notice the message light blinking on his phone.

* * *

Thea and Jed stood in the kitchen.

"I called the other ranchers," Jed said, "They're going to send their men out on a search party."

Thea sighed.

"I can't believe that Daniels said that we have to wait 24 hours until we can report them missing," she said.

"What can you expect," Jed said, "He's on the payroll of the men who might be responsible."

"Then you think Kilroy and his men did something to them," Thea said, more calmly than she felt.

"I think they did what they had threatened to do from beneath their rocks," Jed said.

Jed had done as he promised and had gone to C.J.'s cabin but discovered she had never come back and her car wasn't in the driveway. He had tried to call the lawyers at their motel in town but received no answer. One of his friends dropped by the motel to look for them and then discovered their car was missing and so were they. After he had called Jed back with the news, Jed had delivered it to Thea who had put her head in her hands but then resolved to find them.

She had tried to call Matt out in L.A. hoping to catch him but he hadn't answered. Now she had to go look for his cell phone number.

Butterfly wandered in, wiping her eyes and yawning.

"What's going on," she said, after looking around and seeing worried faces, "Has anything happened?"

* * *

Several hours had passed and Jason still hadn't regained consciousness. C.J. had taken off her light jacket and put it around him but didn't know what else to do, since most of him lay underneath the twisted metal and glass of what had once been his car. Now Maggie began to drift in and out of consciousness, leaving C.J. alone with her own thoughts. Her head hurt and she felt dizzy but she remained awake. She tried to remember back to exactly what had happened but her mind remained fuzzy. All she remembered was seeing a bright light moving towards them from behind, getting larger until it blocked out the darkness. She remembered thinking that a car had joined them on the deserted highway and waiting for it to pass. Then, nothing.

She discovered that her cell phone had worked but when she tried it several times, she discovered she was not within range.

C.J. leaned back in her seat, and noticed it had grown lighter outside. She shivered in the cold and wrapped her arms around herself. She thought it's been at least six hours or so and help hasn't arrived. Sitting in the silence of the car, he didn't know how much longer she should wait but she had to think about leaving and somehow getting up to the road to look for assistance. She didn't' know how much time Jason had left if he was still alive at all. Looking over at the window, she realized she would have to smash the remaining glass out of it to have any chance of climbing out. She reached, grimacing until she discovered a piece of metal lying on the floor. She pulled it up and then turning away from the window raised it against the glass.

It took several attempts and she had to rest briefly between each one but finally, no glass remained to block her passage. She crawled over, trying not to flinch when the car shifted and then she pushed herself through the window, inching her hips through the frame.

She fell only several feet and nearly blacked out but after the pain passed, she looked around her. The air blew frigid against her and a light rain fell but the ground proved solid. She looked back at the car and found that a solid tree had kept it from sliding further down the gorge. She looked up but couldn't see the top, except for the sky. She got down low on her hands and knees and started climbing.

* * *

Matt prepped his plane outside the airport hanger and found the time passing quickly. The sun had risen over the horizon, turning the sky a light pink. He sat inside his cockpit, checking the equipment on the console. Satisfied, he went back outside.

Brody came walking up to him. Matt saw him and raised his hand.

"I'm not working," Matt said, "I'm on vacation so if it's job-related, drop me a line."

His partner looked hurt.

"I'm just coming to wish you good luck on your journey," he said, "And to help you if you need it."

Matt smiled.

"Thanks," he said, "No I'm fine and about ready to take off."

"Before you do, there is one case…"

He saw the look on Matt's face then changed his mind.

"Never mind," he said, "Between Greg and me, we've got it all handled."

"I know you do," Matt said, "And you've got Uncle Roy to help you stay on the straight and narrow while I'm gone."

Brody grimaced.

"I think it's time for a sandwich," he said, pulling out a Hoagie, "Would you like one for the road? It doesn't look like you have inflight service."

Matt shook his head. His phone rang and he looked at the Caller ID.

"I'll take this," he said, stepping away.

"Matt, are you there?"

A chill filled him at the sound of Thea's voice.

"What's wrong," he asked.

"I tried calling you at your house," she said, "C.J. didn't come home last night."

"Wasn't she working late in town with the legal team?"

"Yes she was," Thea said, "But they're missing as well and so is their car. C.J.'s was found parked near the diner."

Matt's mind filled with a thousand different thoughts.

"So you think that they drove off together," he said.

"Something happened to them, I know it."

"Listen, I've got the plane almost ready to go and I'll be on my way," he said, "What are the police doing?"

"Nothing Matt," Thea said, "They say they can't do anything. But the Sheriff, Daniels, he's on a couple different payrolls."

Matt grew silent and then asked a question which had been on his mind for a while.

"Thea, exactly what's been going on here."

She paused.

"C.J. and the other attorneys and even Jed have been receiving threats, probably from individuals tied in with the developers they're fighting against in court."

Matt digested that.

"Okay, I'm going to call the Colorado State Police when I get off the phone. I've got some friends there and they'll send out people to search. They've got a station near Silver Lode so it shouldn't take them long to get started."

"I'm so worried," Thea said, "We've got to find them."

"We will," Matt said, "I'm on my way."

He clicked off the phone and Brody's mood grew somber when he saw the expression on his face.

"What's up," he said, walking over.

"Something's happened to C.J. and the other lawyers last night," he said, "No one can find them."

"What do you need me to do," Brody said, quietly.

"I'm about ready to go but I need you to call the state police and talk to a guy named Phil," Matt said, "Tell him you work for me and tell him to get some officers out searching."

"Do you have any photos of C.J. I can send them?"

Matt reached into his wallet and dug out one that was taken a few months ago, which was worn around the edges.

"Do you need me to come with you," Brody said.

Matt looked at him.

"No…Thanks, but I need you to watch the agency while I'm gone."

"How long's it going to take you until you can leave?"

Matt looked at his watch.

"About 30 minutes," he said.

"I'll get you some coffee," Brody said.

As he left, Matt looked at the sun slowly rising higher in the sky, turning its rosy hue slightly blue.

* * *

C.J. sat on a ledge about several dozen feet above the car. Waves of dizziness hit her so she had stopped to rest a while. She felt coldness permeate her body, as the rain had started falling steady again. She leaned back against the rock to try to shelter herself a bit. She reached in her pocket for her phone and decided to try calling again. When she looked at its buttons, her vision blurred. She pressed what she thought were the correct ones.

Matt heard his phone ring and picked it up. His eyes widened when he saw the phone number that appeared on his Caller ID.

"C.J. where the hell are you," he said, "Are you okay?"

And somewhere about a thousand miles away, C.J. held her phone to her ear and listened to his voice.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10--The latest installment is finished. Hope you enjoy it!

* * *

"C.J., Are you there," Matt said, walking across the tarmac to his plane, "I'm getting the plane ready to leave to come find you."

Silence answered him and he wondered if she were still there or even if he had imagined the phone call. Finally he heard her voice.

"Is that really…you?"

Relief filled him.

"Yes, where are you," he said, "Everyone's out looking for you."

"Houston…I'm not sure where I am," she said, looking around her from her ledge.

"What happened," he asked.

"I…don't know…we crashed the car on the way back to the ranch last night."

"That was hours ago," he said, "What have you been doing since?"

"I got out…I'm trying to climb up the gorge…Jason and Maggie are both hurt in the car."

"Where do you think you might be," he said.

She concentrated.

"I think we were just about to reach the Jamboree Road turnoff when…"

"What?"

" I'm not sure…," she said, "It's cold."

"Are you hurt?"

"I…I don't know," she said, "I ache all over but I think I'm okay."

"Listen, you sit tight," he said, "I'm going to call the state police and tell them where to start looking," he said, "They're already on their way to Silver Lode."

"I'll stay here," she said, holding the phone.

"I'm leaving now too," he said, "It'll be a few hours but I'll be there as soon as I can."

* * *

Brody came up to him.

"Was that…"

Matt nodded.

"How in the hell did she call you," Brody said.

"I don't know," Matt said, "But we got to call the state police and tell them where to start looking."

"I'll do that," Brody said, "You'd better just go."

Matt walked towards his plane and up the steps, pulling the door closed behind him. He went up to the cockpit and did the final preparations to ready his plane to taxi down the runway.

* * *

C.J. sat on the ledge, trying to curl her legs under her and to flatten herself against the wall away from the rain. She didn't know how much time had passed since she had left the car and had inadvertently called Houston but it felt like hours. Her phone had died soon after she made that call so she never was able to call 911. Then again, she wondered if the local police would send a search party for them even if one of them had been able to call for help. She struggled to remember what happened in the time before she had woken up inside the crashed vehicle but all she remembered was a flash of bright light.

"So how long will you be in L.A. this time," Matt said, as he and C.J. walked across the sand towards his house. They held hands and carried their shoes as they made their way up to the boardwalk where some businesses housed in shacks which catered to fishermen had closed for the night.

"I have to go back to Houston tomorrow night," she said, "I have some meetings with some lawyers the following day."

"You've been really busy lately."

"So have you," she said, "I hope you're taking care of yourself. It's not been long since you were sick."

He sighed.

"What has Uncle Roy been telling you?"

She stopped and looked at him.

"Not much just that you've been working nonstop since before the doctor had cleared you for going back to work."

"It was just a little pneumonia," he said. He tilted her chin up with his finger and saw tears in the corners of her eyes.

"It scared me seeing you so sick," she said, "Three days in intensive care before the doctors knew for sure you'd pull through."

"Well I did C.J., and I'm doing just fine," he said.

"Just take time for yourself okay," she said, "I worry about you."

"Are you taking your own advice," he said.

She relented with a smile and they continued walking.

"I'm pulling in some long days…and nights," she said, "But in several months, I'll be going to Colorado to help on that development case that Thea's been telling me about."

"It's nice of you to help them," he said.

"They did so much for me last year," C.J. said, "and they're like family now."

"I miss you," he said, "I wish we could see more of each other."

"I do too," she said, "But we both have our lives to get back on track."

He paused and in response, she stopped and turned to look at him before they stepped onto the board walk.

"I've got something I need to say…"

C.J. opened her eyes and saw that some sunlight had poked through the clouds that filled the sky and warmth had touched her face. From above, she heard someone shouting. She tried to stand up, but couldn't so she tried waving her arms instead.

* * *

Matt landed at the small airport after maneuvering through the approach path which resembled an intricately designed trail between different peaks of the Rockies and required his close attention. The sight which greeted him took his breath away for reasons that didn't just have to do with its beauty. Still, he hit the runway just right, didn't get buffeted by cross winds and brought the plane to a stop at the slot which had been assigned to him at the small airport. He said a silent prayer as he always did when he landed there.

He took care of his plane and then rented a car to drive the short distance into town. He picked up his cell phone to call Thea.

"Hi, it's Matt," he said, "Any news?"

"Yeah, they found the car," she said, "Thanks to the location you passed along."

"How are they," Matt asked.

"They're not sure," she said, "They found C.J. on a ledge but she's suffering from dehydration and mild hypothermia so she didn't make a lot of sense. She did give them the general direction of the car and they sent a team down there but they had to use special equipment to excavate the other two."

"Where is C.J. now?"

"I don't know, last I heard they were still trying to evacuate her."

"I'm on my way there to the Jamboree road turnoff," he said, "Do they have any idea what happened last night?"

"None," Thea said, "They just know the car veered off the road. No sign of the driver tried to stop to avoid an animal or another car. Maybe the driver fell asleep."

"You told me when you called before that there'd been trouble," Matt said, "What was that about?"

Thea sighed.

"I think you need to talk to Jed about that," she said, "He received a couple of the phone calls too. He's at the scene."

Matt put his phone away and kept driving down the curvy highway hoping that they had gotten C.J. and the other attorneys out safely but it sounded like a serious accident. Not to mention that all three of them had spent hours out in the elements awaiting rescue. He imagined that even during the summer months, the mountains got chilly at night and the rain hadn't helped matters.

He pulled over when he saw the ambulances and a couple of fire rescue vehicles along with police cars all parked alongside the highway. He got out of his vehicle and walked up to Jed who was standing next to one of the fire trucks.

"You just missed C.J.," Jed said, "They loaded her up in an ambulance and took her to the hospital in town. Bonnie went with her. The doctors will determine if they need to evac her out to the trauma center in Colorado Springs."

"Did they pull out the others?"

"They're still working on it," Jed said, "It doesn't look very good for the other two. They're banged up pretty bad."

"How did C.J. look?"

"She's bruised up a bit and had a few cuts but they're concerned about internal injuries," Jed said, "She was conscious when they found her and fairly lucid."

"I'm going to go to the hospital," Matt said.

Jed nodded.

"I'll be there pretty soon," he said, then looked gravely at Matt, "There's a lot I need to tell you about what's been going on here the past couple of weeks."

"Then you don't think this is an accident?"

"I doubt this was an accident," Jed said.

* * *

C.J. lay back on the examining table in the small ER, while a doctor examined her and a nurse took her blood pressure. After a good amount of poking and prodding and endless questions, he flipped open a folder and jotted down some notes.

"Okay, it looks like we might have to x-ray the ribs and the cheekbone but it looks like the wrist is just sprained and there are no signs of any internal bleeding."

She sat up, and tried to throw her legs over the table to step down, but a wave of dizziness hit her.

"Oh and you might have a mild concussion."

She nodded.

"Where my clothes," she said, looking down at her flimsy outfit. She hated hospital gowns.

"Not until you're checked out and even if your x-rays come back clean, we might want to keep you over night."

She lifted up her hand.

"No, I've got to get out of here," she said, "I've got work to do."

A nurse came in with a wheelchair.

"Not right now, your cab just arrived to take you to x-ray," the doctor wrapping his stethoscope around his neck.

"How are the people I was traveling with," she said, "I've asked since I've been here and no one can tell me anything."

The doctor looked up from her chart.

"The male's very critical and probably going to Mercy's in Denver and the female's fractured several bones. She might be joining him."

C.J. put her hand over her eyes which suddenly stung. She allowed an aide to help assist her into the wheelchair again reminded by the fragility of life. One minute they were talking and enjoying the conclusion to a hard but rewarding day and the next, inside a crushed car which had gone down into a gorge without having a clue about what happened in the split second in between.

* * *

Matt walked quickly into the hospital after parking his car. He weaved his way through emergency room personnel and patients until he reached a young woman at what looked like Command Central in the busy room.

"May I help you," the woman said, looking up from her paperwork.

"I'm looking for a C.J. Parsons," he said, "She was just brought in from a car accident on the highway."

"Hmmm, I'll look her up," the woman said, switching her attention to her computer screen and clicking some buttons on her keyboard.

"She came in not too long ago," she said, "She's going to x-ray for some precautionary films."

"How's she doing," he asked.

"You'll have to ask her doctor that," the woman said before returning to her paper work.

"Matt…"

He turned around and saw Bonnie walking towards him.

"Jed told me you rode with C.J. to the hospital," Matt said, embracing Bonnie in a hug.

"I think she's going to be okay," she said, "Mostly bruises and some hypothermia."

"I hope you're right," Matt said, as they both sat in chairs near the front desk to wait for any further word.

She patted his hand, after seeing how anxious he looked.

"She's in good hands," Bonnie said, "It's a small town but it's a very efficient, professional hospital."

"I got the news when I was getting the plane ready to fly out here," Matt said.

"That information that you passed along to the state police made all the difference."

"That was C.J.," he said, "I don't know how or why she called me."

"I imagine phone reception is tricky down in that gorge," Bonnie said, "She's lucky she could call anyone at all."

Jed walked up to both of them.

"They finally pulled the other two out of the wreck," he said, "They're going to fly them evac to Denver without bringing them here."

"How are they," Matt asked.

Jed shook his head.

"They don't know if Jason's going to pull through," he said, "He's in critical condition with massive internal bleeding and some possible leg fractures."

"And Maggie," Bonnie asked.

"She's got a couple bones broken in her arm and a concussion," he said, "She also had some bleeding in one of her legs from debris but they were able to stop it."

"Those poor people," Bonnie said, shaking her head, "They were working so hard for the people in this town and very willingly too without complaint."

"Why do you think they wound up in that gorge," Jed said, quietly.

"You don't think it was an accident," Bonnie said, "That Jason fell asleep at the wheel?"

Jed shook his head.

"Bonnie, you were the one that answered the phone when that threat came in," he said.

"Tell me more about these threats," Matt said.

"I'll go get us some coffee," Bonnie said.

The men both nodded at her and she left them.

"The lawyers including C.J., their lives were threatened," Jed said, "And those were the phone calls."

"What do you mean," Matt asked.

"There have also been a couple altercations," Jed said, "One of them took place on federal property. Some of Kilroy's guys were violating the temporary injunction by trespassing and brought shotguns to harass the mustangs running there. "

"So what happened?"

"C.J. wasn't going to back down and met their guns with hers and between the group of us, we outnumbered their fire power so they left."

Matt ran his hand through his hair.

"What the hell," he said, "This battle was supposed to take place inside a courthouse not with guns out on the range."

"That's never how it works though is it, in these kind of battles over land," Jed said, "not as long as this country's been a country."

"I guess not, I mean I'm from Texas," Matt said, "C.J. left some details out of her accounts of what was happening here."

"Don't get mad at her," Jed said, "She didn't want to worry you. The last thing she wanted was for you to get upset and come out here, trying to rescue her."

"She's made that clear," Matt said.

"It's not personal," Jed said, "I think she's still working very hard to find her place in a world that makes sense. You don't go through what she did and stay the same person."

Matt nodded.

"I know, and I think she's amazing in all that she's done," he said, "But I still worry about her and now this…"

"The worrying goes both ways, Matt."

"Yeah I know that," Matt said, "She told me that she's been worried about how hard I've been working since the pneumonia."

"My advice is that you follow her lead on what to do with her case," Jed said, "That's going to be hard to do when you see her because she's pretty banged up from the accident but she needs to feel that sense of control over her own life and that you trust her to have that control."

"That's good advice," Matt said.

"And now, more of the work's going to be on her shoulders with the other two lawyers out of commission," Jed said.

Bonnie approached with the coffee and handed them each a cup.

"I ran into an orderly friend of mine," she said, "He says that she's still getting x-rayed and demanding to be released so she can go back to work."

Matt smiled.

"That sounds like the woman I know," he said.

"Do you really think this is Kilroy and his boys?"

"Who's Kilroy," Matt asked, sipping his coffee.

"The developer in charge of the ski resort project," Jed said, "He's got partners who primarily contribute money but he's the main guy."

"Yeah, he and Mayor Parker and the good old boys," Bonnie said.

Matt narrowed his eyes.

"So you've got elected officials shacking up with developers?"

"That's one way to put it," Jed said, "You've come here straight into a hornets' nest."

* * *

C.J. finished her x-rays and waited to be taken back to the examination room, feeling totally exposed in her gown. She looked around but couldn't find her clothing anywhere.

"Looks like you're about done," the orderly said, "We're going to take you back to the ER and the doctor can talk to you about the results there."

"I feel fine," C.J. said, "A little sore but I'm ready to leave."

"That will be up to the doctor," the orderly said, "If your ribs are fractured and the doctor doesn't catch it, you could develop a pneumothorax."

"I'm pretty sure that they're fine," she said.

The orderly just nodded and after she stepped back into the wheelchair, took her back to the ER.

* * *

Thea came in with a bag to joined the rest of them were sitting. Butterfly trailed behind her listening to her iPod, until she saw Matt. She broke out into a wide smile and walked towards him. He stood up and hugged her tightly and then held her at an arm's distance.

"You've really grown," he said, "You look at least three inches taller."

"They still treat me like a baby," she said, "But C.J. and Thea have been kind of cool."

"How's C.J.," Thea asked.

"The doctor hasn't talked to us yet," Matt said.

"I brought her some fresh clothes in case she is allowed to leave," Thea said.

A doctor walked up to the group.

"Are you relatives of Ms Parsons?"

"We're friends," Thea said, "Matt Houston's the closest to family that she's got."

"I'm Dr. Warner, I'm handling her case."

"How's she doing," Matt asked.

The doctor flipped open a folder.

"She's very lucky to be alive," he said, "Let alone gotten off as lightly as she did."

"Then the news is good…"

Warner looked at Matt.

"She doesn't have any fractured ribs or internal injuries," he said, "She did sprain her wrist and suffer some deep bruising. Her cheekbone might have a hairline fracture but we won't know until we do follow-up x-rays in several weeks."

"So she can be released?"

Warner hedged.

"I'd like to keep her overnight," he said, "She did bang her head a bit but I don't think she has a concussion. Still, she's going to be very sore for several days but she insists on checking herself out."

"When can I see her," Matt asked.

"In a few minutes," Warner said, "I just have to finish some paperwork if she's going to be released."

Thea reached into her bag.

"Can you take her this change of clothes," she said.

Warner examined it dubiously but finally nodded and took them.

"Thank God," Thea said, "She's going to be all right."

"I didn't know if she would be," Matt said.

* * *

A nurse walked out and motioned for Matt to follow her into an examination area surrounded by a curtain. C.J. sat on the table, dressed in sweat pants and a tee-shirt and wearing sneakers. Her wrist was wrapped and as she looked up at him, he saw the bruises and cuts on her face which had been butterfly stitched.

She smiled, gamely.

"More scars for the collection," she said.

"I still got you beat," he said.

He walked over to where she sat and embraced her tightly without saying anything else. She tucked her face in his shirt and wrapped her arms around him.

"Ouch…my cheek," she said, pulling away. He examined it, gently touching it with his fingers.

"It looks pretty bad," he said.

"It doesn't feel too bad," she said, thinking that while he touched it, it didn't hurt much at all.

"I'm so glad you're all right," he said.

Her eyes threatened a couple of tears.

"But they're not," she said, "I heard the news about Jason and Maggie's not so good."

"They're going to a trauma center in Denver," Matt said, "They've got top doctors there who will help ensure they have the best fighting chance."

"I'm going back to the ranch," C.J. said, and was about to get off the table when Mayor Parker walked in the room with Sheriff Daniels.

"What are you doing here," C.J. said, warily.

Matt looked at the men and then back at C.J.

"We rushed here as soon as we found out about the accident," Parker said.

"It was the State Police who found us not your deputies."

"We are in charge of the investigation," Daniels said, and Parker nodded.

"What investigation," C.J. said, "It's an accident…right?"

"C.J., maybe we should let him finish," Matt said.

"You can listen to him," she said, "I'm getting out of here."

"The doctor said he advised you to stay overnight," Daniels said.

C.J. got on her feet, a bit unsteady then stepped backward away from the two men.

"Like I said, I'm leaving."

She walked out on the two men while Matt gave them one last look before joining her.

"C.J., what was that all about?"

She kept walking.

"I'm not talking to those men," she said.

"Jed and Bonnie told me what's been happening."

"Then you know why I don't want or need what they call 'help,'" she said, "I just want to get out of here."

A nurse followed her with a wheelchair, telling her she had to sit in it but she ignored her.

They encountered the others in the lobby and they gathered around C.J. relieved to find out she was okay and being released from the hospital.

"I'll take you back to where you're staying," Matt said.

"My car," C.J. said, "It's back at the diner but it wouldn't start."

"I'll have Joe take a look at it," Jed said.

"I've got to get my thumb drive," she said, looking around.

"Here's some of your things that were on you," Bonnie said, handing them to her.

"Good, here it is," she said, "I've got my laptop back in the cabin so I can continue working."

Matt looked at Bonnie.

"Don't you think that you should rest for a couple days," Bonnie said.

C.J. looked at the both of them and shook her head.

"No, I've got a ton of work to do and not too long to do it," she said walking out in the parking lot.

"C.J.," Matt said, following her, "You just were involved in a car accident that you're lucky to walk around you. The others weren't quite so fortunate."

She turned around to face him.

"That's why I've got so much work to do," she said, "I'm by myself now and it's on my shoulders to prepare this case to bring to Denver next week."

"We could get you some more help," he said.

"I don't need help," she said.

"Is she always this stubborn," Bonnie asked.

"No, usually she's really stubborn," Matt said.

Still he couldn't fault her for it. There were times enough when she was following him to a parked car telling him to take it easy.

"And it wasn't an accident," she said, "Something happened on that road."

"Do you remember anything," Matt asked.

"No...Yes, I think I remember at some point seeing a bright light."

Matt and Jed looked at each other.

"Do you know when they're going to pull the car out and take a look at it?"

Jed sighed.

"Maybe tomorrow, day after," he said, "It's pretty far down. But they didn't say anything about running forensic tests. To them, it's an accident."

"Maybe we could check it out ourselves and see if we find anything suspicious."

Jed nodded.

"We could get a couple of guys to help us."

"I want to get her back to the ranch and settled first," Matt said.

C.J. placed herself between them.

"Don't talk about me like I'm not here," she said, "I'll be waiting for you in the car.'

"C.J., I rented one," he said, "You don't know which one it is in the lot."

"Good point," she said.

* * *

The group broke up and headed to their respective vehicles to go back to the ranch. C.J. and Matt walked towards his car. From a distance, two men watched them.

"Damn, we came so close," one of them said.

"We got two of them out of the way," the other said, "They're not dead but they're out of commission for a while."

The first man nodded.

"Two down," he said, "One left to go."


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11--This is my latest installment. Hope you enjoy it and thanks for the comments.

* * *

Matt drove down the highway back to the ranch, while C.J. sat quietly beside him looking out the window.

"How was your flight," she said.

He laughed.

"Hair raising coming through the Rockies into that tiny airport," he said, "Though the view is always beautiful and well worth the flight."

"Thanks for coming," she said.

"Thanks for inviting me," he said.

She turned away from the window, looking at him.

"I thought you came because I got into trouble."

"I was still fueling the plane when I got the news from Thea that you were missing," he said, "I was flying out to the ranch this morning to see you and to do some of that relaxing that everyone says I need to do."

She smiled, ruefully.

"Some vacation," she said.

He looked at her bruised face.

"It's off to an eventful start for sure," Matt said, "Which means it can only get better."

"I've got to get back to work," she said, "I've got to download the work we did last night on the laptop."

"Now hold on," Matt said, "I know this is very important to a lot of people but you need to take it easy…"

He read the look she gave him.

"At least for now," he said, "You can get up and knock yourself out tomorrow but today, take it easy."

"I can't," she said, "I have legal papers to finish up today and more land surveying tomorrow along with more legal work. That accident wiped out most of the legal team. I'm all that's left on this end."

"So, you need to get all this work completed by when?"

"I've got to submit it to the federal court in Denver next week," she said, "There's a couple of attorneys up there working on this and then we're all appearing for oral presentations several days later."

"I can help with the field work," he said, "If you need it, so you can concentrate on the legal side."

She looked at him and started to say something.

"I know you don't need any help," he said, "But I'd like to help and you know how much I love riding in open country so doing the field work would be more relaxing than almost any activity I can think of engaging in."

Matt watched the furrows on her brow form, knowing she at least was thinking about it.

"And I'm only $500 a day plus expenses," he added.

"Okay…," she said finally, "I guess you could help Jed but I'm coming on a couple of those field trips."

He nodded.

"I hope so," he said, "After you're feeling better."

"Then you have a deal," she said and they shook on it.

With that settled, they continued driving back to the ranch both lost in their thoughts.

* * *

C.J. opened the door to the cabin. She saw Butterfly's laptop and her iPod on the coffee table.

"I can see someone's back already," she said as Matt followed her in with his luggage, "You can take the spare bedroom. Butterfly can sleep in the loft."

"I can sleep in the loft," Matt said.

Butterfly breezed in the living room with a sandwich and a coke.

"No, I've already moved my things up there," she said, "You're stuck with the other bedroom."

Matt went to find it to drop off his luggage.

"You look pretty gnarly," Butterfly said, looking at C.J.'s face, "Put on a wig and some face powder and you could be the Bride of Frankenstein."

C.J. chuckled.

"Gee thanks," she said.

"Was it scary," Butterfly asked.

"The accident," C.J. asked.

Butterfly nodded.

"I don't remember much about what happened," C.J. said.

"You mean you have amnesia?"

"No, thank god," C.J. said, "Been there, done that."

"Anyone want anything to eat," Matt said, when he returned to the living room.

Butterfly looked at one then the other.

"You're not going to like go all domestic are you?"

C.J. tried to suppress a laugh, because her face did hurt.

"No, no need to worry about that in this lifetime," she said, "I'm not that hungry. Maybe some soup."

"Thea's brought some over already," Butterfly said, "Some of her vegetable and beef soup. It's on the stove warming up."

C.J. wandered into the kitchen.

"It smells wonderful," she said, "Who wants some?"

"I'll do it," Matt said, "Why don't you sit on the couch and rest?"

"Yeah, join me C.J.," Butterfly said, "I need some help on my screenplay."

Matt mouthed a silent "thanks" to her.

"What are you working on," C.J. said, sitting down beside Butterfly on the sofa.

"Oh, the usual, radiation turns students into zombies at some high school in a Midwestern town…"

"Sounds eventful," C.J. said, "what do you need help on?"

"I need to know how to write for one of my characters," Butterfly said, "She's the only student not to be infected by the zombies and she's got this crush on this guy who's what they call, the town bad boy…"

C.J. nodded, while Matt put a bowl of soup on the table in front of her.

"I think I see where you're coming from," she said, "I advise that they don't kiss on the first date or the second…maybe the third."

"Who said anything about kissing," Butterfly said, "It's all about the crisis involving the zombie invasion that brings these two people from different worlds…"

"The opposite sides of the universe," Matt interjected.

"Yes, exactly and even though they're so different, they're drawn together by a common goal which is to save the high school and then the world from this and all future zombie invasions. After that's done, then they can go make out."

"Sounds like a winner to me," he said, winking at her.

"Exactly what rating are you giving to the relationship between these two characters," C.J. said.

Butterfly looked puzzled.

"You know, G, PG, PG-13…"

"Oh that," Butterfly said, "PG-13…because those films tend to attract the largest cross-sections of the movie going population and make the most money at the box office. I want my own Corvette by the time I'm 20."

"That sounds like a plan," Matt said.

"What about college," C.J. said.

Butterfly shrugged.

"Most of the major directors flunked out," she said, "But Grandma and Aunt Chris put their feet down and say I have to go, so I'm thinking of some film schools in California."

"You'd make a good lawyer," C.J. said.

"Hmph, no thanks," Butterfly said, "I'm not spending the formative years of my life locked up in a library all the time studying books when there's a world out there."

C.J. started to say something but looked at Matt and thought better of it. She finished her soup and sat back on the couch.

Butterfly suddenly hugged her.

"I'm glad you're back safe."

"Thanks Butterfly," she said, stroking her hair, "I'm hoping that Jason and Maggie will recover."

Butterfly sprang up and went back to the kitchen.

"She's really growing up quickly," Matt said.

"Too quickly," C.J. said, "I'm worried about her."

"She seems like she has a good head on her shoulders and a hell of an imagination."

"Chris and Dan have had their hands full with her," C.J. said, "She's a sweet girl and smart as a whip but she's a teenager and that's a confusing time."

"It'll be good practice for raising their own kids," Matt said, "And it's good for Butterfly to know that there's a lot of people who care about her welfare."

"I love having her here," C.J. said, "She's been a great help but I think she's already got a boyfriend."

They heard someone knock on the front door.

Butterfly ran up to answer it.

"Check to see who's there first," C.J. said.

"We're in the middle of a ranch," Butterfly said, swinging the door open, "Who else would it be?"

Jed stood there with Bonnie, who brought some food.

"Hey, I made some muffins and some stew, where should I put it?"

"In the kitchen," C.J. said, "I'll help you."

The two women left the living room.

"Looks like you're settled here," Jed said.

"C.J.'s promised to get some rest today if she can work tomorrow," he said, "And to let me help you with the field work."

Jed nodded.

"Great to have you along," he said, "You said you wanted to go to the crash site."

"Yeah, I want to look for any evidence which will show what happened last night," Matt said, "Before the authorities have a chance to clean it up."

"I got some guys who can come with us," Jed said, "They just finished some ranching duties and could leave right now."

Matt reached for his jacket.

"I'm ready," he said, as C.J. and Bonnie came back into the room.

"You're leaving," C.J. said.

"Bonnie's going to stay with you while we go out to the scene of the crash," Jed said.

C. J. nodded.

"Tell us what you find when you get back," she said, "And be careful."

Matt looked at her before he left.

* * *

C.J. closed the door behind them.

"I don't know if it's such a great idea sending them out there to go look at the car."

Bonnie put her arm around C.J.'s shoulder.

"Why don't you sit on the couch and I'll get some tea," she said.

She did that and Bonnie brought them both some tea and muffins. Butterfly took some muffins and a can of cola and returned to writing about zombies on her laptop.

"They'll be fine," Bonnie said, "Jed said that they need to get to the car before the local authorities do."

C.J. sipped her tea.

"I don't trust the sheriff to do a thorough and unbiased investigation of the accident," she said, "Especially since I don't think it was an accident."

"You starting to remember anything?"

C.J. shook her head.

"No, just seeing that bright light," she said, "I think it was getting larger before everything went black."

"It must have been another car," Bonnie said, "Maybe they hit you?"

"Then why didn't they stop and help us," C.J. said, "Unless it was on purpose."

"To run you off the road and kill the three of you," Bonnie said, "And the chances were high that if you hit the bottom of the gorge, you would have all died."

"If someone did it intentionally, they didn't have to kill us," C.J. said, "They just had to put us out of commission and except for me, that's what happened."

"Still, if they were caught, they could face serious criminal charges," Bonnie said.

"Maybe that's why they didn't stick around to do a body count," C.J. said.

* * *

Matt, Jed and the other men reached the crash site. The sky had turned slate gray again and a fine mist fell from it.

"I've got some rope," Jed said.

"Tie it to your truck," Matt said.

Reed and Jed did that while Matt looked for the best route down the steep gorge to where he could see the wrecked car partially hidden by shrubbery.

"We're going to have to go slow," he said, "The rain might make for slippery going."

Jed nodded.

"I'll send Reed down with you," he said, "I'll stay up here with Mac."

Matt and Reed tied the rope to themselves and slowly inched down the gorge, careful to pick out their toe holds and where to place their hands before continuing. Matt wiped the sweat off his face several times during the journey.

Finally, they reached the car and Matt took out a small camera and began taking photos of it.

"What should we look for," Reed asked.

"Traces of paint that don't match that of the vehicle," Matt said, "That can be critical."

Reed started inspecting the exterior of the car.

"And also look for any unusual dents," Matt said, "It's going to be tricky for a vehicle this badly damaged but it's also important. Look for anything that doesn't fit with the scene here."

Matt looked inside the broken window into what remained of the inside, which contained large pieces of crushed metal and shattered glass. The most significant damage had been done to the front seat area of the car where Jason and Maggie had sat. Less damage from the impact was present in the rear seat where C.J. had been sitting. Still, after looking carefully at the debris even in that section, Matt realized how lucky she had been to avoid death and more serious injury.

He saw possessions that belonged to the lawyers including a laptop computer and a briefcase and also remains of emergency equipment used to evaluate and treat the injuries suffered by those remaining inside the car.

"I'm not sure I can find anything," Reed said.

Matt looked at him.

"We need to keep looking."

* * *

C.J. began to feel sleepy and wondered if Bonnie had spiked the tea. She relaxed on the couch and listened to Bonnie tell her about her latest attempts at matchmaking one of the rancher's daughters with the new town pharmacist.

"I think there's a Christmas wedding in their future," Bonnie said.

"You're really sure of your matches, aren't you?"

"I'm not the one matching them," Bonnie said, "I'm just getting them together."

"And there's a difference?"

"Well, if you believe in God or fate or a higher power outside ourselves, you believe that it's a matching of two halves which are seeking each other out."

"You mean like soul mates?"

Bonnie nodded.

"You really believe that's true," C.J. said.

"I believe that anything's possible in the name of love," Bonnie said.

"I used to think that way," C.J. said, "In another lifetime."

"What about now?"

C.J. shrugged.

"I don't trust myself to know what I'm feeling when I'm with a man," she said, "I feel disconnected from myself most of the time. Fortunately, I'm too busy with my life for it to matter much."

"Honey, it's going to take some time after what you experienced," Bonnie said.

"Maybe," C.J. said, "But it's really nice that people like you help people find their other halves and help bring them happiness."

"I've found it very rewarding," Bonnie said, putting her cup down.

C.J. paused.

"Jason made a pass at me last night," she said, "He wanted to spend a few days with me in Denver after the court hearing."

Bonnie's brows lifted.

"What did you do," she asked.

"I said I was attracted to him but turned him down," C.J. said, "it was just sex he was interested in and a casual fling, not me."

"How did he take it?"

"Pretty well," C.J. said, "I did it partly because I know that Maggie's crazy about him and doesn't think he knows her feelings."

"Hmmm…."

She looked thoughtful.

"And if he knew my recent back story, he'd run."

"Not if he's a man worth knowing," Bonnie said.

"Maybe…"

Bonnie shook her head.

"No maybes here," she said, "It's a test of a man's character and his feelings about a woman if he knows all about her and doesn't run away."

* * *

Matt looked at the car again and then he saw it. Chips of black paint, on one of the rear corners of the vehicle, lying adjacent to a sizable dent.

"Bingo," he said, "Reed take a look at this."

Reed did.

"They were hit by a black vehicle."

"Which means it definitely was no accident," Matt said, then pulled out a small plastic baggy, "We need to take a very small sample of the paint. I can fed ex it to my partner out in L.A. to test it, see if we can reduce the population of vehicles in this area that could be responsible."

Reed watched as Matt gingerly scraped a few flakes of paint off the car into the baggy which he sealed.

"How long have you been doing this," he asked.

"Sometimes, I can't even remember."

Reed looked at the sky.

"We'd better head back up," he said.

"I just need to take some more photos," Matt said.

* * *

Bonnie looked down at C.J. who had drifted off to sleep on the sofa. She took the cups into the kitchen to wash them. Butterfly sat at the breakfast table, reading a book.

"C.J.'s asleep on the sofa so we'll need to be quiet so she can get some rest," Bonnie said.

Butterfly nodded.

"Do you want to play some cards," Bonnie said.

"Sure," Butterfly said, "I think there's a deck somewhere."

She found one in a kitchen drawer.

"So what are we playing," she asked, sitting back down.

"How about some Hearts?"

* * *

Just short of reaching the board work, C.J. turned around to face him.

"Okay, you got my attention," she said.

"Just that I miss you," Matt said, "I miss working with you, I miss talking to you and I miss seeing you. I miss our friendship."

She looked down at the sand.

"So do I," she said.

"We live thousands of miles from each other and our lives are separate."

She sighed.

"I needed to be in Houston," she said, "My career is there, I've got friends and my counselor is one of the best in her field."

He nodded.

"I know," he said, "I know that's where your life is now."

"And your life is here," she said, "You've got people to help you with your cases now and your friends. They seem like very nice people."

"Yeah they are," Matt said, "But none of them is my best friend."

She stepped up on the boardwalk.

"L.A.'s not the same place for me now," she said, "I have a hard time even going into your office building."

"Because of what happened…"

"I know it sounds like something I can just get over," she said, "I mean, it's just a building and I've got a lot of good memories there."

"But not your last one," he said, "Inside the parking garage."

She nodded slowly as they continued walking.

"I'm trying really hard…"

"I know…," he said, "Sometimes I think you try too hard."

She cocked her head at him.

"What do you mean?"

He took a deep breath.

"You try to push yourself to try to be someone you're not ready to be."

She digested his words.

"I…"

Brody ran up the boardwalk and both of them broke their gaze to look at him.

"What's going on," Matt asked.

"I just got a lead on the extortion case," Brody said, out of breath.

"Now," Matt said, "It's getting late and I've got C.J. here."

Brody looked at her.

"You look really nice in that dress," he said, "She can come along with us. It's just a little stakeout."

She nodded.

"Sure," she said, "Count me in."

Matt took her hand in his as they followed Brody back to the beach house.

* * *

Matt opened the cabin door and saw C.J. lying on the couch fast asleep. Her papers were cast on the table in front of her.

Bonnie walked out and saw Matt and Jed. She put her finger over her lips.

"She's sleeping," she said, "So we'll have to be quiet. I've got some soup in the kitchen and some leftover muffins."

They followed her and Butterfly jumped up from where she was sitting when she saw them.

"We were playing cards," she said.

Bonnie shook her head.

"She beat the tail off of me," she said, "I think we have a ringer."

"What's that," Butterfly asked.

"Someone who's a pro but passed off as an amateur in a competition."

"Cool," Butterfly said.

"So what did you find," Bonnie said.

Matt looked at Jed.

"Paint chips off the rear fender," he said.

"So that means they were hit."

"The paint was black," Jed said, "Matt forwarded the evidence he collected overnight to his partner out in L.A."

"Didn't you say the truck that you, Reed and C.J. encountered on the federal land was black?"

"Yeah it was," Jed said, "But there's a lot of black vehicles around here."

"So what does the sheriff have to say about this," Bonnie said, "Or should I even ask."

"He doesn't know," Jed said, "We had to collect some evidence ourselves in case it 'disappears' during the official investigation."

"I wouldn't put anything past Daniels," Bonnie said, "I wish I never voted for him. Of course, he ran unopposed and said all the right things."

"Most of his money came from developers," Jed said, "Maybe Kilroy was one of them."

"But would he obstruct an attempted murder investigation," Bonnie asked.

"Bonnie, there's some serious money involved in this project," Jed said, "Millions of dollars."

"People have killed for a lot less," Matt said.

"True," Bonnie said.

Jed looked at his watch.

"Bonnie, we'd better get going," he said, "I got to pick up some cattle that are out in the far pasture."

She nodded and picked up her things. Matt walked them to the door.

Jed looked over at C.J. on the couch.

"Make sure she gets plenty of sleep," Jed said, "I'll talk with you later."

Matt said goodbye and Butterfly chimed in somewhere from the kitchen. Then he closed the door and walked over to C.J. He watched her murmuring in her sleep and snuggling into the couch. No need to wake

from her much needed slumber. He walked to the linen and brought out a light blanket to place on top of her. He sat in a chair nearby and picked up his magazine and started reading as she slept.


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12--Here's the latest update. I hope you like it and thanks for the feedback!

* * *

C.J. sat in the car listening to Jason and Maggie talk and thinking about the work that had been done and what still lay ahead. She leaned back against the seat, trying not to let all the tasks that still needed to be done overwhelm her thoughts.

"So how do you think the hearing's going to go in federal court," Maggie asked.

"I think we've got a more than even chance of prevailing if we get a good judge," Jason said.

C.J.'s mind wandered as she thought about Matt and whether or not he really would be flying out to visit her. She missed him a lot but she didn't know what to say to him when he got here. Would he try to get involved in her case? Would he try to take it over to because he believed that he needed to protect her from harm? Would he bring up what happened the night of his party?

Sure enough, the discussion soon turned to Matt and whether or not he would help with the ranchers' case. She said he was planning to fly out to Colorado.

"Just to rest and relax," she said, "He was ill earlier this year and he never took time off to recover. Just went straight back to work."

"This is a beautiful place," Maggie said, "Plenty of ways to relax and if he's feeling better, maybe he could join us in Denver."

"We'll be very busy while we're there," Jason said.

C.J. saw something in the rear view mirror that startled her. She looked behind her to see a bright light approaching quickly. Something shook her forward once and then seconds later, a second time. The car began to swerve as the driver fought to regain control. He looked behind at C.J. but she didn't see Jason's face.

Instead, she saw Andre Duval's.

* * *

C.J. woke up with a start, gasping. Matt looked up from where he was reading to see her sitting up, struggling to get her breath. He left his chair and went to her, embracing her feeling her heart beating quickly against his chest.

"It's okay," he said, pulling her towards him as he sat on the couch. She tried to pull away.

"No…he was in the car."

"Who," Matt asked.

She looked at him wide-eyed.

"Andre," she said, "No he couldn't have been, could he?"

"You had a nightmare," Matt said, "Not surprising considering the accident."

"We were hit from behind," she said, "I remember being pushed forward towards the seat in front of me because something struck us from behind."

"That must have been the vehicle that left traces of paint on Jason's vehicle."

"We were talking about having some fun in Denver while we were there appearing in federal court," she said, "That's the last thing I remember."

"Jed told me about the black truck that you saw on federal land when you had the altercation with those men."

C.J. narrowed her eyes.

"Yes, I think I do remember," she said, "I didn't pay much attention to it at the time because I was more focused on the men holding their guns on us."

Matt smiled.

"I heard that you responded in kind."

She sighed.

"Sometimes it's the only language they understand and no one ever getting the upper hand on me again."

"Did you know these men?"

She shook her head.

"I might have seen them at the council meetings but I never met any of them," she said, "I assume they're working for Kilroy."

"The developer," Matt said.

"I don't have proof, but they were deliberately violating the temporary injunction."

"Was any action taken against them?"

"Of course not," C.J. said, as she tried to move around, "God, I'm sore."

"I'm not surprised," Matt said, "You probably strained a lot of muscles."

"I feel like I've been pummeled."

"Why don't you go take a hot bath," Matt said, "I noticed some Epsom salts in the kitchen. That should help a lot with the muscle pain."

She looked at him, then nodded.

"Sounds heavenly right now," she said getting up to prepare it.

* * *

Kilroy sighed as he watched the men appear in front of them.

"So, what are we supposed to do now," one of the men said.

"Figure out a way to stop that permanent lawsuit from being filed in court," Kilroy said, "That is one of the reasons I am paying you so much money."

"We got two of them out of the way," the man said, "And didn't leave a trace."

"Don't worry, the bumbling sheriff in this town won't put two and two together," Kilroy said, "Besides Parker has him under his thumb."

"Parker couldn't control the city council," another man who was Kilroy's business partner walked up.

"Nick, I told you I had this situation under control," Kilroy said.

"Why then, is one of the attorneys still around to make trouble?"

"We'll take care of her," Kilroy said, "Those papers will never be filed in court in Denver. I'll make sure of that."

* * *

C.J. lay in the warm water, closing her eyes. She was careful not to get her bandaged wrist wet while relaxing in the spacious tub. The water did loosen and soothe some of her tightened muscles and calmness replaced the tension within them. She tried to push the bad memories of Andre out of her mind as she always did when they reemerged. Thankfully, that happened less and less these days but still when she felt most vulnerable, they intruded. So she did what she usually did which was to turn her mind to something else.

The three of them had sat in Brody's car watching the building for several hours. They had driven to the site from Matt's beach house and received a brief summary from Brody about what had happened. Matt had left a few minutes ago to get some coffee in case it was another long night spent sitting in a cramped car waiting for something to happen.

"So do you miss doing this," Brody asked C.J.

She looked at him.

"Sometimes I do," she said, "Houston and I did a lot of stakeouts, often for hours."

"He seems happy to see you again."

She smiled.

"It's great to see him," she said, "It's been a while."

"So how's the job going," Brody asked.

She brightened.

"I love my new career," she said, "It's very busy and there's traveling but I really feel that I've found what I'm meant to do."

Brody reached into his bag.

'Would you like a sandwich?"

She looked at the wrapped item a bit suspiciously.

"What's in it?

"Anchovies, ham and cheese with plenty of horseradish sauce."

She nodded approvingly.

"I'll try one," she said, "Thanks."

She unwrapped it and took a bite.

"Hey, this is pretty good," she said.

"The secret is getting the ratio of Anchovies to onion slices just right," Brody said.

She took another bite, flipping her hair back.

"That must have been rough today," Brody said, "I hated grand jury appearances."

She shrugged and looked out the window.

"I feel like every time I talk about what that man did to me, I'm bringing him back."

"But he's not in a position to harm you," Brody said, "You're in control now."

She didn't know Brody very long but something in his eyes told her she could trust him. His face probably elicited a lot of confessions from suspects in the interrogation room when he worked as a cop. And she wouldn't be surprised if they thanked him afterward for allowing them to get a load off their chests before they were handcuffed and taken off to jail.

"I don't feel that way sometimes," she said, "And there's times I flash back and see him in front of me and I'm filled with so much dread and fear, not for long but it's very intense."

"That'll change with time," he said, "I know what that feels like. I was involved in an onduty shooting of a teenaged kid when I was a cop. I cornered him in an alley and he reached in his jacket to pull out what turned out to be a flare gun."

"I'm sorry," she said, "That must have been horrible."

"The shooting board exonerated me after about a year but I still had nightmares about it for months," he said, "About all the different things I could have done in hindsight when I didn't have much choice in that split-second. I saw that kid's face for months everywhere. My dreams. My waking life."

"How'd you get past it," C.J. asked.

"I didn't," he said, "Oh, I went back to work and spent a few more years being a cop before moving up to detective but I wound up retiring not too long after I was transferred to homicide."

"So you walked away from your career and became an investigator instead."

He nodded.

"And I've slept better since. I never saw him again anywhere."

"But you could no longer be a cop," she said, "That doesn't sound like much of a choice to give something up that you cared about to get some peace."

"It sure didn't at the time, but my life is better now," Brody said, "I think we share that in common you and I. You had to walk away from a job you loved too."

She looked at him startled.

"How did you know," she said.

"I recognize what I've gone through in others when I see it," Brody said.

"Thanks for telling me about your experiences," she said, "It makes me feel a little less alone."

"I'm sorry for my attitude earlier," Brody said, "I was a jerk. Once you get to know me, you'll find I'm a nice guy."

"Houston wouldn't hire a jerk," C.J. said, "He must believe that you're a good person."

"I'm not trying to fill your shoes," Brody said, "Besides, the high heeled look doesn't really work for me."

She laughed.

"No I wouldn't think so."

* * *

She had liked Brody and talking with him had helped her figure a lot of things since he related well to her own experiences in ways others couldn't understand. Like how she'd changed so much and there was no going back. She had to move forward and redefine who she would be in a way that wouldn't cause pain to those she deeply cared about.

She sponged some of the warm water over her shoulders, which weren't quite as sore as they had been, over the jagged scar of her bullet wound which reminded her of her old life.

There was a knock on the door.

"It's me," Butterfly said.

C.J. sat up in the tub.

"What is it," she asked.

"We're having some ice cream. Rocky Road." she said, "Do you want any?"

"Sure," C.J. said, reaching for a towel.

* * *

She walked out to see Matt and Butterfly in the living room eating ice cream. Butterfly handed her a bowl while C.J. staked out a place on the sofa.

"Where'd you find rocky road?"

"Thea brought some over," he said, "She stopped by to see how you were doing."

"I feel a lot better," C.J. said, "That bath really helped."

"Are you sure you're up to riding tomorrow," Matt said.

"Sure," she said, "I might be sore but it's not like I've never been in a car accident before. I'll be

fine."

"Chris called to check how things were going," he said.

"I talked with her and told her everything was great," Butterfly said.

"Does she know about the accident?"

Butterfly nodded.

"But I emphasized that you weren't badly hurt. She's still worried."

"I'm fine," C.J. said, dipping her spoon in her rocky road," Jason and Maggie, they're the ones who aren't fine."

"Jason survived his surgery," Matt said, "Thea called and said they stopped the bleeding. He's in intensive care in critical condition."

"How's Maggie?"

"She's better than they expected," he said, "Several broken bones but she might be released soon. The State Police interviewed her but she has no memory of the accident."

"I've got to call the Denver legal team before we head out tomorrow," C.J. said, "They know about the accident but I've got to tell them that I'm still planning to be there next week."

"Are you sure you're up to all this tomorrow?"

She pointed her finger at him.

"We had a deal," she said, "I'm resting today and I'm back to work tomorrow."

He looked at her, at the determination flashing in her eyes and knew better than challenging her.

"Okay," he said, "Just pace yourself because tomorrow morning, you're going to feel like a herd of cattle ran over you."

"Like I said, this isn't my first car accident."

Butterfly looked back and forth at the two adults in the room.

"Was it like this when you worked together," she said.

"Better."

"Worse."

Matt and C.J. both raised their brows at each other.

"It's all in how you look at it," Matt said, "I enjoyed a little healthy debate before heading out in the field."

"I do too," C.J. said, "If you can keep up of course."

Butterfly walked back to her laptop.

"Okay, whatever," she said, "I think I'll return to the world of zombies because at least that makes sense."

* * *

The morning broke gently, over the Rockies sending sunlight streaming where there had been gloomy clouds the day before. C.J. woke up and grimaced, realizing as Matt predicted, she could barely move. Still, she hauled herself out of bed and headed to the shower, hoping that would loosen up her muscles.

Matt cooked some eggs and brewed some coffee in the kitchen. Butterfly took one look at his omelet.

"What's that," she said.

"It's Texas," he said.

She took another look at it.

"It does kind of look like the state," Butterfly said, "Is it any good?"

He scooped some on her plate.

"Try it."

C.J. towel dried her hair as she walked to join them, immediately heading to pour some coffee.

"Did you sleep well," Matt asked.

She nodded.

"How you feeling this morning?"

She gritted her teeth behind her smile.

"Fine…Maybe a little sore."

"Up for riding," he said.

She met his gaze and nodded.

"How about you?"

"Ready when you are," he said.

"I'm off to go hang out with Thea," Butterfly said, packing up her laptop in her bag.

"Have a good time," C.J. said.

After Butterfly closed the door behind her, C.J. picked up her jacket and her bag.

"We'd better get going and meet up with the others."

They went out to the barn. C.J. walked a bit slower than she normally did, but as the sun warmed the brisk air, she felt better and looked forward to the day ahead.

Jed and Reed had already saddled up their horses.

"Matt, you can take Whisky," Jed said, gesturing to the bay gelding stalled next to Sienna.

"You'll love him," C.J. said, "He's a sweetheart. He might throw you off the first day a couple of times but then he'll be your friend for life."

Matt raised his brow, relieved that C.J. was clearly feeling better this morning in some respects.

"Well, you know what they say about birds of a feather."

Jed stifled back some laughter.

They prepared to mount their horses. Matt looked at C.J.

"Do you need a leg up?"

She gave him that look.

"I'm fine, thanks," she said, swinging her leg over Sienna's back making it look more fluid than it felt.

* * *

They rode off through the meadows to head out to the federal land to talk to the ranchers who had been standing watch over the property during the night to make sure that the trespassers didn't return to harass any more horses.

C.J. looked over and saw several groups of horses including one that she recognized grazing nearby. She reined in Sienna and the others stopped their horses to look at what she saw.

"Let's go over and say hi," Jed said.

C.J. smiled and chirped to her horse, taking off. The others followed across the grass. She slowed Sienna down when she approached the group so she wouldn't startle them. The horses looked up from where they were eating. One smaller buckskin colt nickered when he saw them and approached.

C.J. dismounted and walked up to him. He stuck his nose towards her, his warm breath hitting her face. She stroked his nose and scratched behind his ears after he lowered his head.

"Hi, boy," she said, "How've you been?"

Matt looked at Jed.

"That's Frisco," Jed said, "formerly known as the equine's version of Houdini."

C.J. turned around to look at them.

"He escaped almost every day until we rebuilt nearly the entire fence line last year," she said, "He's Diablo's son."

Diablo Del Sol, the old stallion had lived in the valley for years and had become a legend in these parts. Rarely seen these days, those who did capture a glance of the old boy always brought a good story home.

"He's a nice looking colt, looks a lot like his father" Matt said, dismounting and walking over to where C.J. stood.

"He'd be a good cutting horse," C.J. said, "but he needs a firm hand and someone who can hold his interest long enough to curb his wanderlust."

Matt scratched the colt's head.

"I know someone who's good at both," he said, looking at her.

"I told C.J. if she wanted Frisco, he was hers," Jed said.

C.J. wrapped her arm around the horse's neck.

"I think he'd be much happier here," she said, "He belongs in the valley."

She gave him a final pat.

"I guess we'd better get going," she said.

They rode off until they reached the federal land and saw a couple ranchers there. One of them walked up to them.

"Hi Hank," Jed said, "How have things been doing?"

Hank shrugged.

"Pretty quiet," he said, "How's the lady doing?"

"She's doing fine," C.J. said, with a smile.

"So when does this the permanent order go into effect?"

She sighed.

"We still have to win that round in court hopefully by next week," she said, "We had hoped the temporary injunction would be enough but as you've seen, it hasn't had the effect that we hoped for."

"Some people are too thick headed to know what the law says," Hank grumbled.

"Or they just don't care because they think having a lot of money and buying them a few politicians means they're above that law," Jed said.

"So you think Parker's been bought?"

"Most likely," Jed said, "He's not the man he used to be when he first got elected mayor."

"What about Sheriff Daniels?"

"It wouldn't be surprising to me if he were on someone's payroll too, given how quickly he concluded that what happened the other night was an accident."

"You don't think that do you?"

"No I don't," Jed said, "And Matt here, sent some evidence out to L.A. to be examined by experts. If it comes back indicating that another car hit Jason's, I will personally hunt whoever's responsible down myself."

"Those poor lawyers, how are they doing?"

C.J. dug her toe in the dirt.

"Jason's survived surgery and Maggie's doing better," she said.

Hank shook his head.

"Damn tragedy," he said, "If anyone's responsible for it, I'll sign up for that posse too."

Jed shook Hank's hand.

"Thanks for doing this," he said, "Your relief coming soon?"

He nodded.

"No problem," he said, "And as long as we're standing guard here, none of them are stepping foot in this protected area."

"You know, it's the feds that should be doing this," Matt said, "But my faith in them hasn't been very high lately."

"That goes double for me," C.J. said, "I think we're on our own."

* * *

Thea laughed in the kitchen as Butterfly told her jokes while they prepared to put another batch of muffins in the oven.

"I miss having a young person around the house," she said, "After these are done, we can taste them and see if they're really as good as you're saying.

"My grandma came up with the recipe," Butterfly said, "She loves to cook. She just has trouble getting around these days."

"The price of aging," Thea said, "Youth is indeed wasted on the young."

"What does that mean?"

Thea looked at her.

"It means enjoy your youth while you can. Don't let anyone take it away from you because it's not there forever."

Butterfly frowned.

"So you think that Spike was too old for me too?"

Thea looked puzzled.

"Spike, who's Spike?"

"My boyfriend back in Houston," Butterfly said, "Or he would be if Chris and Dan hadn't split us up."

"Maybe they were worried about you," Thea said, "No one wants to see a young woman like yourself that they love grow up too fast."

"He's really cool," Butterfly said, "But then C.J. told me about Brick and how her uncle had grounded her and she snuck out anyway…"

"We all go through the "bad boy" phase when we're young," Thea said.

Butterfly opened her mouth.

"Get out of here," she said, "You had a boyfriend that you couldn't see?"

Thea nodded.

"Way before I started going out with my husband," she said, "He was quite a bit older than me and very good looking. I thought it was incredible that he would give me the time of day when all the girls swarmed around him like bees to honey. We saw each other any chance we got. In hindsight, I think he was just flattered by this young girl following him around everywhere hanging on to his every word."

"So what happened?"

"He had another girlfriend, one closer to his own age and well, she got pregnant and in those days, unwed mothers were looked down upon. So their families made them get married before the baby was due and not long after, they moved out of the valley."

Butterfly frowned.

"That sucks," she said.

Thea chuckled.

"It did for a while, for about a month which seems like forever when you're young. But I realized that the only reason he caught my fancy was because compared to me, he seemed so much older and more sophisticated. But later, I realized that the love of my life was right there all along beside me and we eventually got married."

"That's pretty cool," Butterfly said, "so what you're saying is that sometimes we look far and wide for things that were there in front of us all along? Like Dorothy in _The Wizard of Oz_"

Thea smiled.

"Something like that."

Butterfly nodded.

"It looks like the first batch of muffins is just about ready to come out of the oven," Thea said, "Let's try them and see how they turned out."

* * *

C.J. bit into her sandwich while sitting beneath her favorite group of trees by the newly built barn. She and the men had come here to eat lunch before heading back out again. As she dismounted Sienna, she felt sore but not as badly as earlier that morning. Still, another hot bath or two was definitely on the schedule once she reached the cabin. She rubbed her shoulders absently as she looked across the grassy meadow towards the lake.

"Your muscles bothering you," Matt said as he sat next to her.

She shook her head.

"I was just thinking about how beautiful it is this morning and how I'm very lucky to be able to see it."

"I feel lucky too."

She smiled at him.

"I love living in the city, all the advantages of doing so but I think I really love the open country best."

"You thinking of relocating again? Being a country girl?"

She slapped his shoulder lightly.

"No," she said, "At least not yet. But some day, I'd like to just work in the city and live in the country. It's a great place to relax from the grind, to settle down, and raise a family."

"You're entering into some serious territory there," Matt said, "Talking about settling down and family life."

"Eventually, I'd like to see if it's true that women can have it all," she said, "What about you?"

Matt grew thoughtful, running his fingers through the grass.

"Of course," he said, "I have to be able to get to the altar first without the wedding being called off or interrupted by someone out for revenge."

She picked up the twinge of pain in his voice, beneath his joking.

"You will," she said, "Any woman should consider herself very lucky to be standing beside you."

"Any woman?"

She looked at him perplexed.

"We're talking about the distant future here, right?"

He nodded.

"At least you made it to the altar," she said ruefully, "The closest I came was finding out my boyfriend was a murderer before accepting his marriage proposal."

Robert Tyler, the well-known television journalist who aspired to win an anchor position through any means necessary. Even if it meant staging kidnappings and then killing any accomplice who threatened to

expose him. At least Tyler had drawn the line at killing her when he discovered that she set him up at a motel. Instead, he threw his gun at a mirror which after it broke, exposed Matt and Roy as having

watched the whole thing. Before their relationship had been as shattered as that mirror, he had swept back to L.A. and swept her off of her feet and in love with him. Matt had worked hard in the beginning to help exonerate Robert and then when he learned that he couldn't, it broke his heart at what he had to do next which was tell C.J. the truth about the man she loved. At first, she hadn't been able to accept it and threatened to resign from Houston Enterprises. Soon after, she realized that he had told her the truth and returned to him. Matt looked at her dazed as if he couldn't believe that was her standing in front of him. She told him she never should have doubted his unhappiness at having to come clean with her, not that it made the pain which consumed her any less. Pain he had tried to ease after Robert had been handcuffed by police officers and taken off to jail. Currently, he was serving a long prison term after being convicted of murder and conspiracy charges. Thankfully, he took a plea so she didn't have to testify against him in court.

Matt looked at her for a moment.

"Bringing Robert in was one of the hardest things I ever had to do."

She nodded.

"I know, " she said, "He wrote me from jail a couple times begging me to give him another chance but I didn't answer his letters. I thought what he did was the worst thing a man could do to me, but I was wrong about that.

He touched her face.

"We both know what it's like to get our hearts broken," he said, "But what I know is that if it hadn't been for you, I don't know if I would have made it through those tough times."

She nodded.

"You were always there for me too," she said, "I think losing Carl was the hardest. I really felt like I'd found something special with him without expecting it. The night he was murdered, he said he had something to tell me that was very important. I remember feeling so excited through the concert to go home with him. I never did find out what it was."

He took a bite from his sandwich, thoughtfully.

"Houston," she said.

He looked up at her.

"Do you think that what we do, who we've become brings too much danger into the lives of those we loved," C.J. asked, "You've lost fiancees to murder. You've had girlfriends and fiancees walk away..."

"Hey, don't leave out the one-night stand who tried to love me to death."

"I'm sorry, I'm not questioning your decisions or your judgment," she said, "It just gets scary sometimes to bring people I care about into my life. Carl died because of my past."

Matt shook his head, sharply.

"No C.J., he died because an emotionally disturbed man you went to high school with years ago decided to kill him so he could harm you."

"I know," she said, "But..."

"No buts," Matt said, "Except I do understand what you're saying because I have felt that way sometimes myself. But we've only got one life and we've got to live it the way we see fit without fear and focus on what's really important to us."

Jed walked over to where they sat.

"What is it, Jed," C.J. asked.

"I just got off the phone," he said, "Sheriff Daniels wants you to come to his office and talk to him. He's opening an investigation into the car accident."

C.J. and Matt looked at each other.

"We'd better get going and see what Daniels' got to say," Matt said.

C.J. stood up and Matt reached out his hand to help her.

"I'm going," she said, "But I'm not holding my breath."


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13-- Hi, I finished another installment and I hope you like for the feedback!

* * *

They all sat there waiting in Sheriff Daniels' cramped lobby inside the small building that served as his field office. Because Silver Lode wasn't the county seat, the town lacked a spacious administrative headquarters for its sheriff. Most of the time, Daniels spent his time in a larger town some miles away but he ventured out to Silver Lode several times a week to conduct business, most of it conducted behind closed doors with Parker or at the corner booth of Silver Lode's only watering hole.

A woman sat doing some paperwork and answering phones while they waited. She had told them Daniels was in transit and would be in his office within the hour.

"He's the one who called us," Jed said.

"Why did he change his mind about investigating," C.J. said, "He told us the other day he thought it was an accident."

"I don't think he wants to investigate," Matt said, "I think he wants to control any investigation that takes place."

Both C.J. and Jed looked at him.

"I think you're right," Jed said.

"Well, I'll give him about 10 minutes and leave because I have tons of work to do," C.J. said.

"I'll give him less than that," Matt said.

Suddenly, the door opened and Daniels walked through it accompanied by a deputy. He introduced himself and went through the motions of shaking their hands.

"Come with me to my office," he said.

They followed him to a surprisingly spacious room for such a small building. He had a nicely-crafted desk made of oak and numerous photographs of himself and other law enforcement officers hung on the wall as well as several where he had posed with elected officials.

They sat down and looked at him. He smiled and folded his hands on his desk, clearing his throat.

"I guess you're wondering why I called you all down here in the middle of the day," he said.

"We had a betting pool in the lobby about what your motives are," Matt said.

Daniels scrutinized him.

"And you flew into our lovely town to assist Ms Parsons after her…accident?"

"I thought you were doing an investigation of this…accident," C.J. said.

"Yes I am," he said, "And I'm personally overseeing the detectives who are assigned to look into this. In fact, my agency has authorized the removal of the vehicle from the gorge."

Jed looked at Matt.

"Did you send your forensic guys down there to take photos and examine the vehicle for trace evidence first," Matt said.

Daniels sighed.

"Of course we did Mr. Houston," he answered," What do you think we are? This isn't Mayberry. We're a professionally certified law enforcement agency."

"I'm not doubting your credentials," Matt said, "I'm more concerned about your intentions."

"Why do you doubt us when you just got into town yesterday?"

"Because this investigation should have started yesterday not today, after the state police announced that it was conducting its own probe."

"That agency is free to do so," Daniels said, "But that's a separate matter. We have our own investigation to conduct."

"So will we be updated on your…investigation," C.J. said.

"Of course you will," Daniels said, "And we may need to interview you and the other survivors."

"One of them's in a coma right now so that might be difficult."

"We're sorry about such a tragic incident happening just outside our town," he said, "But there's not much we can do if it turns out that the driver fell asleep behind the wheel because he's been pulling too many late nights working."

"He did not fall asleep at the wheel," C.J. said, "I know, I was there."

"So what happened then," Daniels asked.

C.J. remained silent.

"You can't tell me or you won't?"

Matt stood up.

"Is this an official interview of a witness," he said.

"No, just an observation followed by a question," Daniels said, "I'll notify her when it's time for an interview."

C.J. rolled her eyes.

"I'll take that under advisement," she said.

She got up and started walking out.

"Do you have anything else to tell us," Jed said.

"No, I think that's about all for now," Daniels said, "Still, it might be best to be careful out there on those roads. You just don't know what can happen."

"What exactly are you trying to imply without saying it," Matt said.

"Nothing…Mr. Houston," Daniels said, smiling, "Nothing at all."

* * *

They walked out to the parking lot.

"Nothing is right," C.J. said, "I knew there really wasn't going to be an investigation and I have no intention of giving an eyewitness account."

"I'd be careful about telling Daniels or his men too much," Jed said, "We don't know how many different payrolls he's on."

"He wouldn't be the first dirty cop I ever met," Matt said.

Jed sighed.

"I'm hoping he's my last."

"You guys head back," C.J. said, "I've got to go check on my car."

"Is it ready," Matt asked.

"They said they'd tell me when I arrived," she said, "Besides I'm going to City Hall to check out some old records."

"Who'll give you a lift back to the ranch if you can't get your car?"

"Bonnie," C.J. said, "Oh by the way, we're having dinner at her house tonight."

"Okay," Matt said, "That sounds great."

He kissed her briefly on the mouth.

"I'll see you later," he said leaving with Jed.

* * *

Jed and Matt drove back to the ranch.

"So do you think Daniels is in the middle of all this or just a hired hand?"

"I'd sure like to find out," Matt said, "We know Parker's on someone's payroll. But what about the rest of the city council members?"

"I doubt it," Jed said, "But it doesn't really matter because they let Parker take the lead on almost every land deal."

"So this isn't the first time developers have come to Silver Lode looking to buy property?"

Jed laughed.

"Hardly," he said, "But they wind up picking up parcels mostly in the valley miles away in the other direction. I think some partners in a chain of day spas wanted to set up a resort there."

"Were there any challenges?"

"Not really," Jed said, "It didn't turn out to be as intrusive as a ski resort and some of the ranchers' wives spend time at the place themselves to get away from their husbands."

"What about Kilroy and his partners," Matt said, "Have they ever been interested in developing any other projects in this area?"

Jed shook his head.

"I think they're mostly back East, creating and building summer resorts for the rich crowd."

"Maybe it's time to find out if Kilroy and his buddies have used similar scare tactics in the past to get rid of their opposition."

"That shouldn't be too difficult to do," Jed said, "What's your plan?"

"I'll give my partner out in L.A. a call and see if he can help us there."

* * *

C.J. talked to Joe, who had hauled himself out from beneath an old truck when she arrived and wiped off his face with a rag.

"I'm just about done with your car," Joe said, "Your problem was a leak in the oil line."

"I just checked the oil not too long ago," she said, "It was fine."

"The line definitely had a leak," Joe said, "You're lucky you didn't damage your engine."

"So when can I pick it up?"

"In about an hour," he said.

C.J. left but her mind lingered on the news about her damaged oil line. She knew that there hadn't been any problem with her car until the other night when it wouldn't start. Did someone damage the line deliberately? She remembered what Butterfly had said about hearing the noises outside the cabin and the strange footprints she had found in the dirt. Did someone do something to the car back then? Still, she had no evidence that her car had been tampered with by anyone but her suspicions stayed with her.

She walked towards City Hall when suddenly Sydney Roth came up to her. She knew that Sydney wrote for the Silver Lode Daily and had been covering the meetings at City Hall which had addressed the ski resort project. She also knew that her eyes followed every man in blue jeans.

"Hey, Ms Parsons, can I have a moment of your time?"

C.J. stopped and looked at the reporter.

"That's about all I have right now," she said.

"I understand you were in an accident the other night," Sydney said, whipping out her notepad.

"Yes, I and the two other attorneys were involved in a vehicle crash that left the other two suffering serious injuries and having to be hospitalized."

"You're still working on the case?"

"Yes, I have no intention of doing anything else," C.J. said, "There's still a lot of work to be done on the permanent injunction papers but that will be completed and filed with the U.S. District Court on time."

"I understand that you had to hire a body guard to protect you," Sydney said, "Why would you need to take those steps if it was just an accident?"

C.J. sighed.

"I didn't hire a body guard," she said, "Matt Houston is an investigator who owns an agency out in L.A. who was retained to do some of the field work in this case given that there's a shortage of people right now."

Sydney brightened.

"I know that he's also the recipient of the "Sexist Mult-Millionaire Alive" according to _People_ magazine last year.

C.J. smiled.

"Yes he is," she said, "You know if you want to do a personality profile on him, I could give you his card and you can give him a call."

"No need," Sydney said, "I do plan on interviewing Mr. Houston for a future article. After all, it's not often we have a real celebrity in our midst."

C.J. stifled a laugh.

"That's great," she said, "Now if you're finished, I've really got to get going."

"I think I've asked all of my questions…for now."

C.J. watched Sydney leave and then walked up the steps toward City Hall.

* * *

"Brody so what I hear you saying is that it's going to take a few more days for the results to come back?"

Matt had called his partner when he had returned to the cabin. Now he paced the living room, not liking the news he heard.

Brody paused.

"The paint chips came back for a particular hue of Ebony Midnight but without some samples taken directly from the car in question, it's going to be like looking for a needle in a very big haystack."

"Okay listen, just keep on them and we'll try and see if we can locate the truck on this end," Matt said, "C.J. and Jed said that the men who they caught harassing the mustangs drove a black truck."

"There are a lot of black pickups," Brody said, "Just like there are a lot of black cars."

"I know," Matt said, "But we've got to start somewhere. These men mean business. All three of them could have just as easily died in that crash and we wasted time listening to the sheriff."

"He's just interested in monitoring any investigation of that crash that you might be doing," Brody said, "Don't give him anything. At least not anything that's true."

"Okay, I got to go," Matt said, "C.J. and I are heading off to dinner tonight with Jed and Bonnie."

"Sounds like you've taken your relationship to a new level, the dinner party" Brody said, "How's she doing anyway?"

"She walked away with bruises and cuts," Matt said, "And then she went straight back to work."

"A woman after our own hearts," Brody said.

* * *

C.J. looked at the records spread across the table in front of her. She had been led by a woman into a fairly good-sized storage room with rows upon rows of documents, some with labels. As far as locating the rest, well it would be more like putting a fishing line in an ocean and hoping to snag an impressive catch. Now after an hour she realized that what she was looking for might not be inside one of the folders retrieved from the containers on the shelves. She also noticed that she had an incoming phone call and pulled out her cell.

"Hello," she said, noticing that no phone number appeared up on the ID.

"Listen bitch, you were lucky to walk away from that crash," a familiar voice said, "Next time you'll be dead."

She looked at the phone and sighed, wondering how this individual had gotten her cell phone number. The caller had hung up per usual before she could respond by telling him, listen you punk, if you come near me, I'm going to kick your ass down the street and be done with it.

She hated getting threatened just for trying to do her job. She just knew if she met this coward face to face, she could take him. Maybe he realized that too.

Suddenly she heard another noise. A few footsteps outside the door and then something being slipped beneath it. She looked and found an envelope lying on the floor. She left her seat to move quickly to the door to open it. But when she did, she discovered an empty hallway.

She opened the envelope and read it.

_To the lawyer who's left, _

_If you're interested in receiving more information, meet me tomorrow night at the park at 9 p.m. midnight alone. If I see anyone else, I won't be there. What I have to show you will be worth your time. _

_Signed, Concerned Citizen _

She looked on it for any clues on who might have sent it but found none so she folded it up and put it in her pocket. She sat back thinking, in a matter of minutes she had received both a threatening phone call and an anonymous tip in writing from someone who no doubt had fled as quickly as they had come. Not too bad for such a small town like Silver Lode. People always thought that the cases that she and Matt had taken in the larger cities like L.A. were the more complicated and more dangerous ones. But that hardly ever was the case compared to the small towns. Sometimes the two of them found themselves caught in the middle of two sides of a divide both armed by people acting from deeply felt emotions and sometimes just as volatile back stories going back generations. She sighed as it had become more and more clear with each passing day that this case she had taken to help the ranchers in the valley had followed that path.

She picked up her things and got out of there.

Matt sat in the living room reading, as Butterfly breezed in the front door.

"How'd your day go," he asked before she could sneak right past him.

She spun around.

"Oh Thea and I did some baking," she said, "I brought some Banana Nut muffins back if you'd like to try them."

He put down his magazine.

"Okay, I'm game," he said.

She reached into her bag and tossed him one. He deftly caught it and took a bite.

"Not bad," he said, "C.J. will be back soon. She 'll probably eat the rest of them if you're not careful."

"So how was your day?"

"Pretty good," Matt said, "We went riding out and stopped to visit Frisco."

"Oh yeah, the mustang that used to escape all the time," Butterfly said.

""That he did," Matt said, "But he's put that behind him and is moving on."

Butterfly sat on the couch, nibbling on a muffin.

"Did you know that Thea had her own way cool older boyfriend when she was my age?"

"You mean her husband," Matt said.

Butterfly shook her head.

"No, before him," she said, "At first she ignored the guy she wound up married to because she had a huge crush on this older guy but he had one of them, what do you call it when their parents force them to get married?"

Matt smiled.

"Ah, shotgun weddings."

"Yeah, one of those," Butterfly said, "On the account that he got some girl pregnant."

"Oh."

"But Thea said she was over it in about a week and then she discovered that her friend that she didn't pay much attention to wasn't so bad after all…"

"They did get hitched and were married for a very long time," Matt said.

"Yeah, I guess it's the ordinary nerdy guys who are the keepers," Butterfly said, "'Doesn't seem fair to me."

Matt searched his mind for something to say. His experience dealing with teenagers not being much in the way of giving them advice.

"Butterfly, men and women are attracted to each other for a variety of reasons and most of them have little to do with physical attributes."

"So you might pick a nerdy girl who's nice over a girl who's like hot and has…?"

Matt coughed.

"It's not that cut and dry," he said, "But I'll pick a woman who's got a big heart, loves the outdoors, is passionate about life and laughs at my jokes any day over one who's just pretty on the outside. The hard part is, the type of beauty found inside of a person is something you can only find by knowing someone for a while. But that's also the fun part if you meet the right person."

"Like you can't tell a book by its cover, right?"

"Something like that, though I've heard it put in other ways."

Butterfly narrowed her eyes.

"Were you a nerd?"

Matt smiled.

"No, I wasn't," he said, "It took me until college to take my studies seriously. That's when a very good friend of mine proved to me that you could be interested in book learning and still have a lot of fun. That's when I started applying myself more."

"That might be in college but at my school, it's all what you look like and who you hang with and if you're a nerd, then you're always going to be one."

Matt shrugged.

"What's wrong with being a nerd," he said. "Most of the successful people started out as nerds. Even in the film industry, look at George Lucas, Stephen Spielberg. The important thing as my father always told me is to be true to who you are rather than try to be something you're not."

Butterfly smiled and jumped off the sofa running to her laptop.

"Excuse me, while I write that down before I forget it," she said, putting on her iPod.

Matt watched her go, breathing a sigh of relief that he had apparently avoided the gauntlet for now.

* * *

The door opened and C.J. walked in the living room.

"What an afternoon," she said, putting her bag down.

"Did you get your car," Matt said.

C.J. nodded.

"Yeah, Joe fixed it up today," she said, "I needed a new oil line."

"The old one worn out?"

"I don't know," she said, "The car wouldn't start because most of the oil had leaked out of the line."

"That's strange," he said, "How bad was the leak?"

C.J. shrugged.

"I don't know how long it was there but it couldn't have been that long," she said, "I've never had any problems with it before and Thea said she serviced it last month."

"The timing's a bit suspicious since your car wouldn't start the night you were run off the road."

She ran her hand through her hair.

"Yeah, it is," she said, "If it had started, I would have been riding home by myself and we wouldn't have all been in the same car."

"Three at one blow is a lot more efficient than going after you all separately."

She nodded, a chill running through her.

"So what did you find out at City Hall," he asked.

"Not much," she said, "Of course, most of the older records there weren't organized well."

She sat down on the sofa.

"I had a few other strange things happen when I was at City Hall."

"Like what?"

She shrugged.

"Oh, I got another phone call from an anonymous person telling me that I was lucky to walk away this time and next time I'd be dead."

"That's not going to happen," Matt said.

C.J. shook her head.

"I just want to find out who's calling me and kick their ass until Sunday."

"You're already doing that," Matt said, "And soon you'll have your chance to do it inside a courtroom."

She tucked her feet beneath her.

"It's not all bad," she said, "I also got an anonymous note slipped under the door clandestine style from a 'concerned citizen' asking to meet with me tomorrow night."

Matt frowned.

"You're not going there alone."

"I have to go alone," she said, "If they see anyone else, they'll leave."

"I don't care, C.J.," Matt said, "You remember how this went down last time."

She looked at him.

"Every single day."

He softened.

"Okay, I'll talk to Jed…"

He saw the expression on her face.

"We'll talk to Jed and plan this out so you can meet this person and stay safe."

She nodded.

" C.J. I'm not trying to tell you how to handle your case," Matt said, "It's just that it's gotten dangerous and I don't want anything to happen to you."

She sighed.

"Houston, what happens to me can't be any worse than what I've already faced," she said, "I know how to handle myself. I spent the past year taking training courses to make damn sure I know how to handle myself. I am never going to let anyone hurt me ever again let alone do worse."

"C.J., look at you," Matt said, "Look at your face, you've already been hurt. You've been working and staying in what's supposed to be one of the most peaceful places on God's earth and someone's already tried to kill you."

"_Tried_, Houston," she said, standing up, "I'm still here and I'm still fighting."

Matt knew that, noticing that her fists were balled and her legs in a crouch. He wondered if she were even aware of that.

"You've been fighting for a long time now."

She didn't like hearing that.

"I've had to," C.J. said, "Sometimes I've had to fight just to get up in the morning and not have the first thing I remember be what that man did to me. I've worked so hard to put it behind me, to try to anyway and move on and I'm getting to that point. All I want is to just do what I have always loved to do and that's use my law degree to help people."

"But it's dangerous," he said, "You just got a threat saying that next time, you'll be dead."

"You get threats all the time," she said, "We both did when I worked in L.A."

"That's different," he said.

"How so?"

Matt fought to control the emotion in his voice.

"Because there I could protect you," Matt said, "And when I'm not there, I can't."

She felt tears threaten. She almost brushed them way with her hand but stopped herself.

"We can't always be there and protect each other," she said, "But that doesn't mean we can't live our lives, do our work and try to take the precautions that we can."

He got up and started pacing.

"It's not enough."

She put her hands on her hips.

"It's going to have to be enough," she said, "You can't always rescue me from everything that's going to happen. And that's not what I expect from you. That's not what I want from you. I told you what I did want and_ that_ wasn't enough."

And with one last look at him, she left the room, leaving months of frustration and pain in her wake.

Butterfly came out of the kitchen and looked at Matt.

"Did I miss something?"

Matt didn't answer. He just sunk back down on the couch.


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter 14---It's been a productive weekend and here's another installment of this somewhat long story. I hope you enjoy it and thanks very much for the input.

* * *

C.J. lay back with her eyes closed in the warm bath tub, willing the aches to go away. Her muscles had tightened up throughout the long day and especially after her argument with Matt. She wanted to feel relaxed when they all headed off to have dinner with Jed and Bonnie. She loved spending time with them, and she hoped to end this day in a better place than it was now.

She thought ahead to her court date in Denver and wondered if she would be finished with all that needed to be done by then. Then she thought about Jason struggling to stay alive in the ICU at Mercy Hospital in the same city where a judge would decide the fate of the ranchers in the valley. Next week, she would learn whether or not one judge she had never met would grant the permanent injunction that he, Maggie and she had worked hard on to deliver for the ranchers who had entrusted them in the battle to preserve their way of life and the mustangs for their future generations. She hoped that she didn't disappoint them.

Then finally her thoughts approached a place she didn't want to go. About what had just happened and how without intending to, she had deeply hurt her best friend.

Matt had been her closest friend for almost as long as she could remember. Who had been fighting a hard battle inside not to come rescue her from the evil in the world which had stolen her life and had scarred her soul. She knew that she hadn't made that easy for him, her life being what it had been for the last year. Her needing to carve herself a new place to make up for losing the parts of her she could never get back. Through all of it, he had been the one solid presence, which made her current feelings about who she was and what her place would be all the more confusing. What was her life now and how did the people she cared about fit in it, including the one she cared about most of all?

She also knew that if she didn't fight hard to regain a sense of who she was now that she had become damaged goods in her ability to relate to people on different levels, she might never find her way.

She sponged warm water on her arms, trying to come back to the present when she saw the scars on her palms. They used to bother her enough for her to consider plastic surgery but she realized that those were not the only reminders of the wounds she had suffered. Only the most visible ones. And when she began the hard work healing herself within, she hadn't noticed the lines that creased her hands as much. But it was times like this when she realized she still hadn't completed that journey.

* * *

She heard a knock on the bathroom door.

"Who is it," she asked, warily.

"Who do you think," Butterfly said, "We've only got a few minutes before we have to leave and I still have to shower."

"I'll be out in a minute," C.J. said, reaching for her towel.

* * *

Jed and Matt barbecued out in the yard behind the house, while Butterfly sat under a tree working on a notepad. She said that she wanted to describe the beauty of the view from the yard while the setting sun cast its lines and shadows over the mountains and the meadows which rested below them. C.J. and Bonnie sat inside the house tossing the salad and finishing the potatoes.

"Your life is never boring," Bonnie said, "A death threat and a secret source inside 30 minutes. When I go to City Hall, it's just to pay a boring utility bill on the store."

"I wonder who it is," C.J. said.

"Signing it 'concerned citizen' doesn't narrow down the list of suspects all that much."

"I want to meet with this individual," C.J. said, "But Matt wants to be there too so nothing happens."

Bonnie nodded.

"Sounds like a smart plan," she said, "You know it could be another trap. Seeing as it did come on the tail of that threatening phone call."

"I know," C.J. said, "But it could be critical information I might need to make all the difference next week."

"You're feeling a bit overwhelmed here, aren't you?"

C.J. looked down.

"Yeah, just a bit."

Bonnie noticed a change in her friend's voice.

"What's wrong?"

C.J. picked up a head of lettuce and started shredding it with her hands, dropping pieces of different sizes in the bowl.

"I got in a fight with him before we left to come here," she said, "That's one reason you might not want to seat us together for dinner."

"What did you fight about?"

C.J. remained silent for a moment, her brow furrowed.

"We don't really fight that often," she said, "But it's usually about the same thing. Something happens to one of us and the other one gets upset because we couldn't prevent that something bad from happening."

"Does this latest round have anything to do with last year?"

C.J. nodded.

"I think partly," she said, "I think when Houston found out how bad it got, it devastated him that he couldn't stop it. He felt so bad for taking off like he did when he just did what he felt he had to do to set himself right."

"Did you tell him that there was nothing he could do? That he wasn't responsible?"

"Yes I did and I know he understands that most of the time," C.J. said, "It's just times like the last couple of days when those feelings return."

"It's hard for someone who really cares about someone to not be able to stop something bad from happening," Bonnie said, "Just ask my husband."

"I know," C.J. said.

"That's a very difficult wall to penetrate as I know and so do you."

"I've got my life to live and I can't let what happened stop me," C.J. said, "I've already gave up way too much already to surrender more of myself."

"I don't think that's what Matt believes he's doing," Bonnie said, "I think he's trying hard to keep history from repeating itself to someone he really cares about."

"I know," C.J. said, "I just wish there were a way to sort this out."

Bonnie patted her on the shoulder.

"There always is," Bonnie said, "And you'll find it."

* * *

"Want another beer?"

Matt looked up.

"No thanks," he said, "I'm still working on this one."

Jed checked the steak.

"It's almost done," he said, "You're not looking as happy as you did earlier today."

Matt sipped his beer.

"C.J. and I had a fight just before we left," he said, "She told me about an anonymous note she had received from someone who wanted to meet her tomorrow night in town. She of course wants to go alone because she's afraid the person won't show if they see anyone else and I told her I'm not letting her go meet anyone like that by herself."

"Oh boy," Jed said.

"What does that mean?"

"Matt, there's nothing logically wrong with what you told her," Jed said, "In fact, she'd be foolish to risk going out by herself."

"So what did I say that was wrong?"

Jed sat down next to him on the steps.

" I think that C.J.'s biggest concern is that she'll never be able to protect herself from anyone trying to hurt her because when faced with that, she couldn't. That's why she's taken training including on the shooting range to protect herself. She's been like that since as long as I've known her which of course is only since her kidnapping."

"She's changed a lot since then," Matt said, "She wasn't quite this upset when she believed I overstepped my bounds. She would object sometimes but not so strongly."

"She might be wondering if it's about protecting her from danger or about protecting her from what you believe is her bad judgment."

Matt digested that.

"And you think that she believes I'm trying to rescue her from herself."

"Maybe not from herself," Jed said, "But that you don't have a lot of faith in her to look after herself. To exercise judgment in a situation where it's most needed."

"Why would she think that?"

Jed sighed.

"Because she's trying to rebuild confidence in her own self in these areas that's been lost," he said, "Not surprising after what happened when she last decided to meet someone she didn't know who contacted her. As much as you blame yourself for not being there when that happened, that's how much more she blamed herself for making the decision she made that night."

"How…

"I know, because I've been there myself when I lost my wife because of my job and it's a difficult road."

"So what should I do?"

"Have some faith in her, show her that you do and allow her to decide how much she'll let you in on the decision making," Jed said, "I think you'll find that if you give her a little space, she'll be more open to your advice."

Matt nodded.

"I have a lot of faith in her," he said, "I just don't want her to face what she did last year. She's struggled so hard to rebuild her life after what that animal did."

"You've been really solid for her this whole time," Jed said, "And that's meant a lot to her, which is another reason why it might be hard for her to talk to you when she's frustrated. She doesn't want to hurt you."

Bonnie came out.

"Salad and potatoes are done," she said, "How's the barbecue?"

"Just about ready," Jed said, after poking another fork in the meat.

* * *

They sat around the table, enjoying the food. C.J. and Matt sat on opposite sides but the chill between them had thawed somewhat.

"Great steak," C.J. said, relishing each bite.

"The secret is the sauce," Jed said.

"Don't be modest," Bonnie said, patting his arm, "He doesn't like to admit he missed his true calling in life."

"There's still time," Matt said, "You could give this all up and start your own restaurant."

"I love ranching too much," Jed said, "The only thing I enjoyed more was being a cop."

Matt dug his fork into the potatoes.

"You know, it's too bad you're not the sheriff," he said.

Jed stuck his head up.

"You shouldn't have said anything," he said, "I just got Bonnie to stop bringing that up."

"Why not," C.J. said, "You have an extensive law enforcement background, you know the area and the people. And you have a strong sense of justice and fairness. You're a natural."

Jed laughed.

"Thanks but no thanks," he said, "I'll stick to ranching and leave the policing and politics to others."

Bonnie snorted.

"Well if you don't run for sheriff," she said, "Someone ought to run against Parker for mayor next time."

"Why not you Bonnie," C.J. said, "I know you have what it takes. You're strong, you're smart and you'll help anyone in need without needing to be asked."

"Yeah, Bonnie, that would be so cool to have a women mayor," Butterfly chimed in.

"Really," Bonnie asked, pleased.

C.J. nodded.

"I knew that the first time I saw you," she said quietly.

"When was that," Butterfly asked.

Bonnie and C.J. looked at each other for a moment.

"When I first went to the…store," C.J. said.

Matt waited for her to finish but she pushed herself from the table and began clearing plates. He watched her head off to kitchen with a stack of dishes.

* * *

After a quiet walk home down the road from Jed and Bonnie's house, Butterfly settled back into working on her screenplay in the kitchen with a pile of Banana Nut muffins and a can of cola alongside her. C.J. steeped some herbal tea and took a mug out onto the front steps to sit for a while. The sky filled with stars from one end to the other and a sliver of a pale moon overhead watched over them. In the distance, she could hear a coyote howling.

She looked around the back yard first, to make sure no prowlers lurked but only the sound of crickets chirping met her. Suddenly, she heard a door open and close and some footsteps approach her, creaking the wooden stairs. She looked up and saw him.

"Can I join you," he said.

She nodded and shifted to give him more room. He sat down and didn't say anything more. The silence between them wasn't uncomfortable and she focused back on counting the stars in the sky.

"I'm really sorry about what I said earlier," he said, "I had no right to say those things."

She looked at him.

"No, I shouldn't have come down as hard on you as I did," she said, "You were right. It's stupid to go out and meet someone you don't know alone. I should know better."

"I think you do, better than most anyone," he said, "But I understand how much it matters if there's a chance that this person has information that can make all the difference."

"It might," she said, "It might not or it could be a trap."

"That's the risk that both of us have always taken as part and parcel of working in investigations," he said, "Sometimes it works out."

"And sometimes it gets dangerous," she said.

He paused. She reached for his hand and grasped it.

"It's not your fault what happened," she said, "Please stop blaming yourself."

He looked at her.

"It's not yours either."

She smiled.

"Touché"

"Do you blame yourself," he said.

"I used to a lot," she said, "But I'm realizing that many bad things happen because there are bad people out to make them happen. It sounds obvious but it's hard to believe that when you keep spending your time and energy instead second guessing every decision you made that day."

"That's what I did for a long time," he said, "But I guess you knew that."

She squeezed his hand.

"I wouldn't have made it through all that if you hadn't been there when I really needed you," she said, "So don't beat yourself up for not being there sooner because you were there when it mattered."

He put his arm around her and drew her close.

* * *

The next morning, they rode out to check on the ranchers guarding the federal land near what had been the Wyatt ranch. The night had passed peacefully enough, with the only excitement being the sighting of a couple of coyotes.

"I think Kilroy's men have been scared off," one of the ranchers said, "But we'll keep coming out here anyway."

"How's the legal work going," another asked.

"It's still going," C.J. said, "As soon as I get finished, I'll be heading back to town to keep working on it."

They said goodbye to the men and headed back across the meadow. Matt looked around.

"There's some horses over there," he said.

C.J. followed his gaze.

"Yeah, it's another pair of mares and their babies," she said, "I never get tired of seeing them."

"Remnants of the Old West," Matt said, "I hope they'll always be here to serve as a reminder of what once was."

"I hope so too."

"How you feeling today," he said.

She smiled.

"Better," she said, "Less like a herd of cattle ran over me than yesterday."

"That's good," he said.

"Oh I forgot to tell you, a local reporter wants to talk to you."

He looked surprised.

"Talk to me?"

"Yeah, she knows all about you and wants to do a feature story."

"Why?"

C.J. stifled a laugh.

"She reads _People_ Magazine."

His cheeks flushed a bit.

"Oh...that."

"It might be good publicity for us and for the town."

"I'm not sure the mayor and sheriff would agree," Matt said.

"Anyway, her name's Sydney Roth and she's got an office at the _Silver Lode Daily_ in town."

"I'll think about it."

She looked at her watch.

"I've got to go," she said, "See you later."

"I'll be there later this afternoon," Matt said, "Jed and I will help you work on some of the logistics for that meeting tonight."

She looked at him quietly.

"Thank you."

Then she chirped to Sienna and rode off.

* * *

C.J. parked the rover near the diner and took her bag in with her, sitting down in the corner booth. Edith, the waitress came up to her with her pad of paper.

"The usual?"

C.J. nodded and began getting to work. She booted up her laptop and pulled up some files to work on.

"Fancy running into you here."

She looked up to see Kilroy and one of his partners standing next to her.

"I'd say the same but somehow I don't think this is a coincidence."

Kilroy and his partner, Nick, looked at each other.

"While sure it is," Kilroy said, "We're in town having a meeting with Parker and thought we'd grab a bite to eat before we got down to business."

"No food at the corner bar?"

"Hey missy," Nick said, "You really should do something about your manners."

C.J. crossed her arms.

"Or you'll help me with that?"

"That's not what we said," Kilroy said, "We're just passing along some friendly advice."

C.J. tilted her head.

"Okay then, in the spirit of sharing, I'll give you some friendly advice back. You know you really should do something about your style of doing business," she said, "and stop trying to threaten people who you believe stand in your way."

"That accident on the highway was just that...an accident," Kilroy said.

She looked at up at them.

"Who's talking about what happened on the highway?"

The two men looked at each other then back at her.

"Let me tell you something," C.J. said, "I'm going to win this fight and there's nothing that you, your partners, the mayor or any one of your hired thugs can do about it. So you really should just think of cutting your losses, packing up your bags and looking for a buyer to your product you can swindle because you aren't having much luck here."

Kilroy's face turned red, then turned around and left. Nick stayed by her table for a moment longer.

"You better watch your step...bitch."

C.J. rolled her eyes when he left and wondered if he were the one who had made the threatening phone calls. Edith stood nearby with her Chili burger and fries.

"I'm sorry you had to hear that," C.J. said, as Edith placed the plate in front of her.

"Those guys are mean as snakes," Edith said, "I can't wait until they do leave this town in peace."

C.J. couldn't argue with that.

* * *

Matt walked into the cabin where Butterfly and Thea sat playing cards. Thea shook her head as she saw him.

"This girl has caught to be world champion at gin rummy," she said.

"Grandma taught me how to play," Butterfly said, "She plays twice a week at the center with her friends."

"So how are the men doing," Thea asked.

"They're doing fine," Matt said, "It's been pretty quiet."

"C.J. called," Thea said, "She's been working pretty hard and she'll be done by seven."

"Jed and I will be out there before then," Matt said, "We have some things to look into."

"Make sure she's not by herself when she's heading back," Thea said.

Butterfly plopped on the couch.

"Oh before I forget to tell you, Reed and Carter invited me to go to the diner with them tonight and then a movie."

"What movie," Matt asked.

"I don't know...Return of the killer zombies part 10, maybe."

"Did you ask C.J.?"

Butterfly sighed.

"I haven't had the chance," she said, "Can't I ask you instead?"

Matt thought about it.

"Okay...but both you and Carter are going to sit with Reed right?"

Butterfly rolled her eyes.

"Of course, what do you think we're going to do? Sit in the back and make out?"

Thea stifled a smile.

"No," Matt said, "But this will make C.J. feel a lot better about me letting you go."

"Like I would waste seeing a perfectly good zombie flick to tonsil lock with some guy I've only known a couple of weeks."

Matt glanced at Thea whose eyes danced in amusement.

"This is what you have to look forward to some day," she said, "When you have teenagers of your own."

* * *

Bonnie sat down in the booth at the diner, while C.J. worked on her computer.

"Business was slow at the store today," she said, "So I thought I'd see how you were doing."

C.J. looked up.

"Thanks," she said, "I think I've got most of the ranchers' declarations entered into the writ as exhibits. Jason was much better with this new software than I am."

"You'll do fine," Bonnie said, "How are things going on the other front?"

"I spoke with Houston and we agreed to respect each other's positions and he and Jed are going to keep an eye on things from a distance while I meet with this unknown source tonight."

Bonnie nodded.

"You know that's for the best," she said, "That way if the person's motive is to give you information, you'll still get it and if it's to harm you, you'll be protected by two of the quickest shots in the west, present company excluded."

C.J. smiled.

"I don't think it's going to come to a shootout," she said, "But it's always best to be on the safe side."

Bonnie made a face while sipping her cream soda.

"Kilroy and that other guy came into the store not too long ago acting all smug," she said.

"They were here too," C.J. said, "Next time anyone calls me a 'bitch' I'm going to smack them."

"Which one said it?"

"Kilroy's partner Nick," C.J. said, "He sounds a bit like the guy on the phone."

Bonnie sighed.

"It's different for us females," she said, "There's not enough derogatory words in the English language to hold over men's heads but in our case..."

"I've been called them all many times over," C.J. said, "I think some men, not all of them, but some think that our place is not owning businesses or practicing law but in servicing their needs."

"True."

"They're not going to win this battle, Bonnie so they can call me whatever they want," C.J. said.

"Kilroy had the gall to tell me that my business would be booming if his ski resort were built and brought in all the tourists."

"That might be true," C.J. said, "But will that matter that much if your town loses its identity?"

Bonnie shook her head.

"There's nothing wrong with Silver Lode," she said, "It's a great place to live, to raise kids and enjoy living off the land."

"I think it's a great place," C.J. said, "And I'll do my part to make sure it stays that way."

* * *

Matt parked his car outside City Hall and walked towards the building. A woman walked up to him.

"Aren't you Matt Houston?"

He turned around to look at her.

"Yes I am," he said, "And who are you?"

She smiled and stuck out her hand.

"I'm Sydney Roth of the _Silver Lode Daily_."

He shook her hand.

"I heard about you," he said.

"All good I hope."

"You're interested in doing a feature story on me?"

"I'm interested in at least talking to you about doing an article for our local paper."

"I see," Matt said, "I'm pretty busy right now."

"Oh we could talk about it," she said, "I'll buy you a cup of coffee at the diner."

Matt looked at his watch.

"Okay."

They walked into the diner and Matt saw that C.J. and Bonnie were sitting and talking in the corner booth.

"Friends of yours," Sydney said, following his gaze.

"Yes," he said, as they both sat down.

Edith came and they ordered two coffees. Sydney studied Matt for a moment, leaving him with the sensation that he was a specimen under a magnifying glass.

"What did you want to ask me," Matt said.

"I was thinking of maybe doing a full spread feature on you and getting some snapshots to go with it."

He looked uneasy.

"This isn't like what they call beefcake is it," he said, "Because I only take some of my clothes off for charity."

"No, no...this is a family newspaper," Sydney said, "Just photos of you going about your daily business of...investigating whatever is you're investigating here."

"I'm working on the lawsuit filed by the ranchers against Kilroy development."

"Oh that," Sydney said, "Well, we can mention that in the article too."

He narrowed his eyes.

"I would think a hard-hitting journalist like yourself would be more interested in writing about this whole situation rather than writing feature stories about people like me."

She shrugged.

"There's not much to the whole lawsuit over the ski resort deal," she said, "Kilroy's going to win and this town's going to get a ski resort. The guy never loses."

"Everybody loses one time or another."

She shook her head.

"Not this guy if you look at his impressive record," Sydney said, "He's like Goliath having a bunch of Davids firing grains of sand at him from their slingshots."

Matt smiled.

"I know one 'David' who's not going to quit and she's sitting over there," he said.

Sydney looked over her shoulder at C.J. sitting working on her computer while Bonnie looked over her shoulder.

"Her?"

C.J. looked up and saw them both looking at her and smiled back.

"The one who looks like she's been in a car accident?"

C.J. left her booth and walked over to where Matt and Sydney sat.

"I see you two found each other," C.J. said, smiling, "I look forward to reading the story when it's in print."

"I might need some quotes from you when I'm almost done," Sydney said, "Including your reaction to when he found out he made _People's_ Magazine's Sexiest Man Alive list."

C.J. shrugged.

"I wasn't all that surprised," she said, winking at Sydney, "Maybe if you play your cards right, he'll tell you about his experience at the recent Bachelor's Auction in L.A."

"C.J...I don't think she wants to hear about that," Matt said.

"Sure I would," Sydney said, "So where did you take the lucky lady, the one who bid the highest?"

Matt looked up at C.J. who bit her lip to keep from laughing.

"I...didn't get that far in the process," Matt said, "But I was invited back next year after...we pay the cleaning bill."

Sydney looked confused.

"Cleaning bill?"

"For knocking down the Adonis ice sculpture and breaking the refreshment tables, floral displays, causing several fainting spells..."

"The itemized list is at his office in L.A.," C.J. said, "You can call this number here...and ask for Roy Houston. He's in charge of settling accounts."

Matt started to open his mouth.

"But before you judge him for that, he did save a lady's purse from being snatched."

Matt closed it.

"And several society column mishaps aside, he's the greatest guy out there, the best friend a woman could ever have and they broke the mold after they made him as far as being the sexiest."

_Sexiest?_

Matt's eyes met C.J.'s and she winked at him.

"I see you're going to provide some interesting comments," Sydney said, "I'll give you a call later."

C.J. nodded.

"We'll I've got more work to do," C.J. said, "It's been nice chatting with you."

She walked back to her seat.

"So what were we talking about," Sydney said, sipping her coffee.

But Matt's attention had followed his friend back to her seat.

* * *

Bonnie looked over at Matt and Sydney.

"What did you say to them?"

C.J. shrugged.

"I just gave her some quotes for her article that she's planning to do on Houston."

"Must have been _some_ quotes."

"Just trying to help," C.J. said, "I've really got to find those notes I left in the cabin."

"You know Sydney has a reputation," Bonnie said.

C.J. didn't look up from her computer.

"Reputation for what?"

"Well, when she really wants to get to know the subjects of her stories, she really works to get to know them if you catch my drift."

"Houston's a grown man," C.J. said, "I'm sure it's nothing that he can't handle if he wants to...get to know her better."

Bonnie looked over at them.

"She's a lot to handle," she said, "She did a profile on Joe the mechanic before he married Cindy Sue and broke his heart and a few car parts."

"Houston will be fine," C.J. said, "He never gets himself into situations involving women unless he wants to do so and except for one woman who tried to kill him and me, it's worked out pretty fine."

Bonnie's eyes widened.

"Oh my," she said.

"Isolated incident," C.J. reassured her.

* * *

Matt listened to Sydney tell him about some of the profiles she had done on other people who had interested her.

"Most of them are locals," she said, "But occasionally, we get a real-live celebrity like you in the flesh."

"Hopefully, not too much in the flesh."

"Not unless they choose to be," she said, "And no one's complained yet."

He narrowed his eyes.

"Are you interested in the article or in me?"

She blinked her eyes.

"Oh, the article, mostly," she said, "But you're a great looking guy in a rugged outdoorsy way which sells out here. _People_ Magazine knows how to pick its sexiest men and you're the first one who's visited our fine town."

He smiled.

"You're building me much larger than life," he said, "I'm just a person who gets up in the morning like everyone else."

"That's a sight I wouldn't mind seeing," Sydney said, placing her chin on her hand.

* * *

The door flew open and Butterfly rushed in, laughing. Behind her trailed Carter and Reed. Everyone else looked up from where they sat and C.J. got up and walked over to her.

"Butterfly, what are you doing here?"

"Hi C.J.," she said, "We're here to catch some burgers before we head off to the zombie flick."

"You never told me you were planning on going out tonight."

"You weren't there so I asked Matt and he said it was okay for me to go."

C.J. looked at Matt. Sydney looked at both of them.

"Is she like your daughter or something?"

"Or something," Matt said, "She's a..."

"We're borrowing her," C.J. said.

Butterfly walked straight up to Sydney.

" I'm Butterfly," she said, "They're kind of my guardians for part of the summer."

"Really, what a pretty name" Sydney said, reaching for her notepad.

"I've known them since I was a little girl and my sister got murdered by some evil men who kidnapped me. They rescued me and then made sure to find me a home with people who loved me."

"How...sweet."

"I'm supposed to be with my Aunt Chris but she's just found out she's knocked up right after she forced me to break up with Spike. He's my boyfriend, cool guy, cooler bike and put me on a plane out here to stay with C.J."

"Yes, she's staying with us," Matt said.

"I thought she was staying back at the ranch," C.J. said.

"Matt said if I sat with Reed and not in the back of the theater making out with Carter, it was fine."

"I didn't exactly put it that way...," Matt said, scratching the back of his head.

"I put it that way," Butterfly said, "But he said he trusted me and I'm not going to do anything reckless."

Carter walked back towards them.

"Butterfly, what do you want on your burger?"

"Extra onions, no pickles....and onion rings extra crispy instead of fries."

He nodded and rejoined Reed at their booth.

"Okay Butterfly, it's fine with me if you go to the movie but you'll be going back with Bonnie, okay?"

"What are you going to be doing," Butterfly asked.

"We have work to do and won't get back until pretty late," she said, "We'll pick you up from Jed and Bonnie's when we return."

Butterfly nodded, then hugged C.J. before joining Carter and Reed.

* * *

Outside the diner, Kilroy and Nick stood talking.

"Do you think Parker is having second thoughts?

"I'm not taking that chance," Kilroy said.

"We lose his support, it's going to be very difficult to continue with this project."

"He's a pretty comfortable politician who's facing reelection this fall and so far has no opposition. There's no reason for him to balk."

Nick frowned.

"When I bought into this with you, you assured me that there wouldn't be any problems."

"I underestimated the opposition, but most of them are out of the picture."

Nick gestured to the diner.

"Not all of them."

"Leave that to me, Nick."

They both walked into the diner.

Matt and C.J. looked up to see Kilroy and Nick walk in, wondering what would happen next.

* * *


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter 15---I'm finished with this installment. Hope you enjoy it and thanks for the feedback.

* * *

Everyone in the diner looked up as Kilroy and Nick entered.

"My my," Kilroy said, "It looks like this is a popular spot tonight for the underdog crowd."

Matt looked up at both of them. Nick glowered at him and walked away but Kilroy stopped by his table and smiled at him.

"And you must be Matt Houston that investigator from L.A.," he said, "Traveling all the way from L.A. to our neck of the woods to lend his assistance to the lost cause."

"I don't deal in lost causes," Matt said, "But I'll take your comment under advisement."

"So you're officially a member of what's left of the ranchers' legal brigade?"

"I'm here to make sure nothing else happens to any member left on that team," Matt said, "As long as we're on the same page there, we shouldn't have any problems."

Kilroy smirked.

"You don't honestly think I had anything to do with the unfortunate incident on the highway?"

"Did I mention anything about the car accident?"

* * *

C.J.'s phone rang and she went into the hallway near the restrooms to answer it.

"Hi, this is C.J., is that you Denise…how are things going in Denver?"

She listened as Denise gave her a progress on the legal filings that had been submitted while C.J. and the other attorneys had been busy in Silver Lode.

"Okay…thanks…I'll see you next week…Bye."

She clicked off her phone, looked up and saw Nick.

* * *

Kilroy glared at Matt who sat there calmly sipping his coffee.

"I and my associates had nothing to do with any misfortune that's fallen upon these attorneys including your associate," Kilroy said, "What probably happened is that whoever was driving late at night fell asleep at the wheel and drove off the side of the road."

Matt nodded.

"Well that's where I have a problem," he said, "You see, the people in the car at the time remember something hitting them from behind before they as you said, drove off the side of the road."

Kilroy's face lost some of its color but he recovered quickly enough.

"They…must be confused about what they remember," he said, "They were all injured."

"Not that confused," Matt said.

* * *

C.J. looked up at Nick who blocked her path.

"Get out of my way," she said.

"Not before I tell you that if you don't back off, you'll be sorry."

C.J. nodded, suddenly recognizing something about him.

"You're the guy on the phone, aren't you?"

His jaw set and he stared at her without blinking his eyes.

"What guy on the phone?"

She sighed and crossed her arms.

"I told you to get out of my way."

He suddenly grabbed her by the arm and pinned her against the wall, pulling her by the hair. His breath smelt of whiskey on the back of her neck and her cheek smarted from where it hit the wall. She felt a wave of fear fill her and struggled to suppress it.

"We've warned you and you have disregarded those warnings," he said, "So I'm going to give you one you will understand, if you don't back off, Kilroy's going to run out of his options and then he's going to hand the job of dealing with you and your ilk off to me and I'm telling you now, I'm not as nice as he is."

He reached for her shirt and whispered in her ear. She closed her eyes and counted to five.

"Okay, I got your message," she said, more calmly than she felt, "Now let me go."

He released her. She spun around, grabbed his arm, pulled it behind him and pushed him to the ground where he fell with a thud. She kicked him for good measure in the side two times. He gasped and grabbed his ribcage as she stood over him.

"Now get mine. Don't you dare even think of touching me or threatening me or anyone else," she said, "You touch me again, I'm going to break some of your ribs and a few other body parts. Got that?"

She turned around and walked away, not waiting to see whether he got up. Suddenly, she walked right into Butterfly who stared at her, jaw dropped.

"What did you just do to that guy?"

She looked at the younger girl.

"Told him to leave me alone," she said, putting her arm around Butterfly's shoulder.

* * *

"Then if there's evidence left behind, that could cause some problems," Matt said, "You know what one of the tenets taught to investigators is? That the perpetrator always brings evidence to a crime scene and takes something away with him."

"What does that have to do with me," Kilroy said.

"Wait," Sydney interjected, "Are you accusing him of being involved in the car accident that injured the attorneys?"

Matt looked at her.

"You're quick," he said.

"How dare you make such outlandish accusations that slander my good character and that of my firm," Kilroy said, "I could sue you for this."

"Then sue," Matt said, "But to defend myself from a meritless legal action, I'll have to present my case which is that the car accident was no accident and I don't think you're going to want that."

"So you are saying that it was his fault," Sydney said, writing in her notepad.

"I'm saying it will be interesting to see what the state police concludes in its investigation in comparison to what Sheriff Daniel's office comes up with and you can quote me on that."

* * *

"C.J. what happened," Bonnie asked, "I heard a commotion."

She forced a smile that she didn't feel.

"I'm fine," she said, "Kilroy's partner on the other hand is not fine."

Bonnie twisted in her seat and looked down the hallway, as did Reed and Carter after Butterfly breathlessly told them what C.J. had done to the man.

* * *

Matt looked up as C.J. walked up to him. He read in her eyes that something had happened.

"C.J., what's the matter," he said, "What's going on?"

She ignored him and focused on the other man.

"Kilroy, your partner is lying in the hallway holding onto his rib cage," she said, "The next time he touches me, he'll be holding onto a different body part."

Kilroy's eyes widened a bit.

"What did you do to Nick?"

"Nothing permanent…this time."

Kilroy left them in a huff to go check on Nick's condition.

"What did Nick do," Matt asked C.J.

She sighed.

"He approached me and essentially said that if I don't back down by the time Kilroy exhausts his arsenal of bad behaviors, it'll be his turn and he's worse."

"Are you okay," Matt asked.

She nodded.

"I think it's almost time to meet Jed."

Sydney stepped in their path.

"So if Nick files assault charges against you, what are you going to do?"

C.J. looked at her.

"Hire an attorney?"

She walked outside to get some fresh air. Matt let her go. He had something to do first.

* * *

Butterfly walked up to him, with Bonnie.

"I saw it," she said to Sydney who was still scribbling away, "And C.J. was just defending herself."

"What happened Butterfly," Matt said.

"I saw most of it," she said, "The man blocked her path. She asked him to move and he grabbed her arm and pinned her against the wall. Then he grabbed her hair and then her shirt. But he let her go and she turned around and grabbed him good. Then she pushed him on the ground and kicked him a couple times and told him not to touch her on account he might lose some body part next time."

Butterfly looked sheepish.

"I think I know which one she was talking about."

Bonnie looked at Matt, who already started walking towards the hallway.

"Be careful," she said, following him.

Matt saw Kilroy talking with Nick and stopped to face them.

"I know what you did," Matt said.

"She's a liar," Nick said, "She approached me. I said I wasn't interested."

"Give it a rest," Matt said, "There was a witness."

Kilroy sighed and looked at Nick, shaking his heads slightly.

Matt then reached forward and grabbed Nick by the collar. Bonnie thought he might slug him but Matt just held onto him.

"You know, I'd love to kick your ass from one end of this town to another and that's just to warm up, but I think the lady handled it well enough. But you go near her again, I'm going to reconsider what I just said."

"Are you threatening me," Nick said.

Matt sighed, then let him go.

"You see that's what punks like you always say when you're caught threatening people," Matt said, "No I'm not threatening you, I'm telling you how it's going to be from now on."

Nick started to turn away.

"Although after doing some thinking, I think you're better off facing against me than her."

Kilroy grabbed Nick by the arm and they both left. Matt rubbed his forehead as he watched them go and Bonnie put her hand on his shoulder.

"Are you okay," she said.

He nodded.

"You handled it really well."

"I remember some really good advice I received," he said.

Butterfly came up to them.

"Carter, Reed and I are off to the movies," she said, "The show starts pretty soon. Personally I think what happened here would make a better one."

She dashed off to catch up with the others.

"Ah, the resilience of the young, how quickly they move on" Bonnie said, shaking her head.

Jed walked back into the diner.

"We're running late," he said.

"Where's C.J?"

"She's outside waiting," Jed said, "She told me there was a little altercation with Kilroy's partner."

"He might not think it's so little," Matt said, "But she handled herself really well like she usually does."

They walked outside after Jed said goodbye to Bonnie who went back to her store. C.J. stood beside the car waiting for them.

"We've got less than an hour," she said, "and a three-hour window to wait. On the bright side, if it was Nick, I don't think he'll be showing up."

"No he won't," Matt said.

She frowned.

"What did you do?"

"I told him that between me and you, he was better off with me."

She smiled.

"Yeah, I did put him in his place," she said, "It felt better than it should have."

"Nothing wrong with that," Matt said.

* * *

They got into the car to plan their strategy. Matt and Jed would stake out the park from two different locations while C.J. waited at the meeting place. She had walked there and they watched until she reached a picnic table underneath a tree in a well-lit area.

"I wonder if this person's going to show," Jed said, before he and Matt walked to their separate locations. Matt looked around and didn't see anyone loitering or walking, in fact a silence permeated the grassy area which surrounded the table where C.J. stood, looking at her watch.

Time passed and Matt wondered if the stakeout was for naught when suddenly, he saw what appeared to be a shadow moving out of the bushes and then a person dressed in a dark coat emerged beneath the park light about ten yards from the table. C.J. saw that person to and began to slowly approach the figure.

Matt kept his eyes on her to make sure nothing happened, ready to spring into action if the figure acted aggressively against her. All the possibilities of what could go wrong kept him on his toes.

* * *

C.J. had waited patiently for nearly an hour and found her mind wandering but each time it did, she had forced her attention back on looking for the person who had contacted her. She had no idea if she knew this person or had ever seen him or her. She hoped that the persons intended to help her not hurt her as one incident where she needed to defend herself was more than enough for one evening.

She still smarted from where her cheek had struck the wall, as that part of her face still bothered her. She sighed, hoping she hadn't broken it in the accident but she wouldn't know until she returned to the doctor for follow-up x-rays. She had hated it when Nick had put his hands on her and she hated even more what he had told her but she felt good for how she had handled the creep. Hopefully, he'd take the hint and leave her alone.

She looked up suddenly, and saw the figure standing by the light. She studied it carefully for movement but the person simply stood there and looked at her. She got up and slowly, cautiously moved closer to the park light. Apprehension mixed with anticipation filled her as she watched the individual in the dark coat reach into a pocket and pull out an envelope.

"Here's something that might help you," the person who sounded female said, "I can't tell you much more. But there's more where this came from."

C.J. tucked the envelope in her jacket and when she looked up, the figure had moved away so quickly, she just saw it slip back in the shadow. She waited for a moment and then walked back to where Matt and Jed were located, opening the envelope as she went.

Matt watched her as she walked away and exhaled a sigh of relief, not realizing how tense he felt for the past hour. He felt elated that the intentions of the anonymous message sender had been to help C.J. on her case. He knew she did as well.

She reached the car where Matt and Jed waited for her. She showed them the paper and they all looked at it under a street light.

"What is it," Matt asked.

"It looks like a prior land deal with Parker's signature on it," C.J. said, "I'll need better lighting to make out the date."

"Do you know who this person was?"

She shook her head.

"I couldn't get a good look," she said.

"It's getting late, we'd better get back to the ranch," Jed said, "We'll tail you on the way home."

She nodded and they left for their respective cars.

* * *

C.J. watched as a tired Butterfly wandered into the cabin and off to the bathroom before disappearing up into the loft. They had picked her up from Jed and Bonnie's and she had talked non-stop about the movie, about how she had won some free refreshments during the pre-show zombie trivia contest, how C.J. had kicked that guy's ass and how cool Carter had looked in his jacket.

"Uh oh," C.J. said, "I think young love intermixed with a good dose of hormones has emerged again."

"For Carter or his leather jacket," Matt said.

"Both probably," C.J. said, "Leather on a guy can be intoxicating to a girl her age."

"Speaking from experience?"

"Maybe…"

"It's probably a harmless crush," Matt said.

She turned to face him.

"Love at that age is never harmless," she said, "It's more important than eating and drinking."

"And breathing," Matt said, smiling.

C.J. nodded.

"That too."

Matt sat down on the sofa, feeling weary after a long day.

"Does that feeling ever really go away?"

C.J. paused.

"Not really," she said, "But when you're a teenager, every emotion is amplified about ten times. And when you're grown up, things get so complicated. It's not just about feelings. It's about reality."

"Meaning?"

"That just because you feel strongly about someone or something, doesn't mean that it's always meant to be. Things happen and you can't change them."

"Come here," he said, patting the sofa.

She looked at him then sat down. She relaxed against him and he pulled her closer to where they both lay on the couch.

"You had a very busy day," he said.

"I'll have another one tomorrow, and the next day."

"Are you getting tired of doing this," Matt said.

She looked at him.

"At the end of the day sometimes," she said, "But I wake up in the morning ready to go out again."

He stroked her hair.

"You're amazing."

"Just determined," she said, "I want to win this one, for the ranchers but also for myself."

"I can understand that."

"So are you going to do that interview with Sydney?"

He paused.

"I'm not sure she's really interested in the article."

C.J. smiled.

"Did she hit on you?"

He nodded.

"With all the subtlety of a semi truck."

She laughed.

"What's so funny?"

"She really wasn't that subtle, was she?"

Matt looked at her.

"There I sat thinking, she was interested in my mind."

She stroked his arm.

"The downside of being on _People _Magazine's Hit List."

"Yeah, they never do have a special issue about The Smartest Men Alive."

"No they don't," C.J. said, "I don't know if anyone would buy that issue if they did."

"I wish she were more interested in writing about the rancher's fight than how I look in a pair of jeans."

She smiled at him.

"Which is very nice, I might add," she said, tossing him a wink.

He raised a brow.

"Now I really feel like a sex object."

Her cheeks flushed and she changed the subject

"At any rate, you can still talk about the issues involving the ranchers," she said, "Just slip in some statements between questions about your workout regimen and what you look for in a woman."

"I'm not looking for a woman," he protested.

"You're always looking for a woman, Houston," C.J. said, "Although I do have some advice to pass along on Sydney from some of the hearts she's broken, just be careful with yours."

He looked at her closely, touching her face.

"I'll keep that in mind."

* * *

The morning broke and C.J. got up from her bed and stumbled into the shower. Her muscles had tightened overnight and her wrist ached. She removed the brace that had replaced the bandage and noticed the bruising cast yellow splotches rather than the angry shades of purple she had seen a couple days earlier. At least she hadn't broken it again.

The warm shower helped and as she toweled off, she rubbed her shoulders which were the sorests spots. Someone knocked on the door.

"Butterfly…"

A male voice greeted her.

"It's… me," he said, "Jed said there's some problem out on the old ranch land with some mustangs and we have to get out there right now."

She cursed her body as she left the bathroom to change into jeans and a worn chambray shirt. Then she grabbed her gun.

Minutes later, she and Matt headed out to the barn, having grabbed some energy bars to go and then out riding their horses to meet Jed and Reed on the trail.

"How you feeling this morning," Jed said.

"A bit achy, but pretty good," she said, her lips in a grim line.

"What's up," Matt asked.

Jed gestured across the meadow.

"I just got a call from an anonymous source that there's trouble with the mustangs," he said, "Not much more except some men were seen harassing them and one or more might be injured."

"Damn," C.J. said and took off with the others following.

She saw the horse just as it looked up at her, shaking its black mane, which offset its dun coloring. It was wrapped up in some wiring where a portion of the fence had collapsed. Some men were standing around it laughing and waving guns.

She pulled up Sienna before the others got there and dismounted. She walked towards the men drawing her gun.

"C.J…." Matt yelled.

Jed pulled up and looked at the horse. "It's Diablo," he said, in surprise.

C.J. played them no mind, focused on dealing with the threat in front of her.

The men looked up and in response, she aimed her gun at them.

"Get away from the horse, now," she said, "I'm not asking twice."

They ignored her until they heard her shoot once near their feet. Matt and Jed had pulled up near where Sienna stood grazing as if her rider did this every day of the week. Two men stepped back but one of them aimed his shotgun at the horse.

"He's caught up in the fence, he's wild and this is the only way," the man said.

"How did he happen to wind up in that fence," she said, still aiming her weapon. The horse kept trying to pull himself out of where the wire caught him, kicking his legs and whinnying.

C.J. looked back at the stallion.

"It's okay, boy," she said, walking towards the man making sure that she stood between him and the horse.

"You're going to have to shoot me if you want to shoot the horse," she said, evenly. "And if you try to shoot me, I'll get a shot off first."

Matt felt helpless, watching the scene unfold and concerned that if he drew his weapon, it might cause the man to shoot his own. The man's eyes went back and forth. He saw the woman standing in front of him aiming a gun at him without flinching and then caught his two men retreating to their horses.

"You'd best move on," Jed said.

"You have ten seconds," C.J. said, her aim still steady.

"Come on Duke," one of the men yelled, "That lady's crazy. She'll shoot you as soon as look at you."

Duke glared at her once more then slowly backed away from Diablo and her, then walked faster back to the other men. They all mounted their horses and took off.

She watched them go as Matt and Jed approached her and then she put her gun away.

"I guess that's it for them today," she said, then turned her attention towards Diablo.

She looked back towards the others.

"Anyone got any wire cutters?"

Jed nodded.

"I'll get mine," he said, returning to his horse to search his saddlebag.

She approached Diablo slowly and talking softly to him the whole time.

"Easy boy," she said, "This won't take very long and then we'll let you on your way,okay?"

Sweat beaded her face as she neared the stallion's head and suddenly, Jed stood behind her with the wire cutters. Diablo had calmed down and looked at her with his eyes half closed. She tentatively stroked his forehead, where his star rested and moved down towards the velvety feel near his nose. She thought she heard a soft neigh.

Matt stood there, with his heart in his throat.

"You're a good boy," she said, "Just keep still for a little while longer."

He blinked his eyes at her but remained quiet, though his muscles tensed below his hide. As if he could explode at any moment in a fury but chose to trust her instead.

"Good boy," she said, "This won't hurt, I promise."

She reached for the wire cutters and carefully worked through the intricate labyrinth of wire that had interwoven with Diablo's body. While she trimmed the wire away, she visually inspected Diablo's body from his worn hooves to his sinewy legs and broad back. Except for some small cuts, he appeared fine.

"Just one more..."

He whinnied and tried to move and she cut the final wire away and he broke loose. She stood up and looked at the stallion and he gazed back at her, stomping his hoof into the ground before taking off in a gallop across the meadow. She watched him go, transfixed at the sight.

Matt walked up to her.

"That was really something, Ms Parsons."

She shrugged and looked at him, smiling.

"He saved your life once," she said, "I owed him."

"He seemed to know you're trying to help him."

She looked down.

"I think he and I understand each other," she said, "We come from the same place."

She walked off back to Sienna after handing the wire cutters to Jed. Matt shook his head and watched her as she walked away, realizing that even if you had known someone for years, they could still knock the breath right out of you.


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter 16---Here's another chapter up for this story. I hope you like it. Thanks for reading and for the comments!

* * *

C.J. sat in the car with Matt as Brody left them to get more coffee and doughnuts from a 24 hour shop across the street. No one had appeared near the building for several hours and both of them wondered if Brody had gotten a bad tip. Matt passed C.J. the binoculars.

"Do you see anything?"

She looked through them, shaking her head.

"How long have we been here?"

He looked at his watch.

"Four hours," he said.

She sat back, resting her head against the seat.

"I remember these days," she said, "Better coffee places now."

"It seems like these days have been just one stakeout after another."

"You get a lot of cases?"

He nodded.

"Business has been booming."

She smiled.

"That's good," she said, "I'm happy for you Houston."

"And what about you," he said, "How's your new career treating you?"

"I like it," she said, "The training's hard, but the work is interesting. It's hard not to take it home sometimes."

"I know what you mean," he said, smiling.

"But I love helping other women," she said, "And Fran and the other women at the center have been very helpful with offering resources."

"Is your work dangerous," he asked.

She hesitated and he turned to look at her face, waiting for her answer.

"Sometimes…but I receive plenty of backup support."

He looked out the window for a moment.

"I'm sorry I couldn't be there with you today," he said, "I know it must have been rough."

She rubbed his shoulder.

"You couldn't be," she said, "It's a secretive proceeding. I didn't know it was on until this morning."

"Were you alone," he asked.

"During the questioning, it was the U.S. attorney, the judge and the jury," she said, "But during breaks I had an advocate with me."

"I hope they charge the bastard," he said.

C.J. felt the emotions churn inside him even more than hearing them in his voice.

"It's out of my hands," she said, "I know this isn't easy for you."

"It's much harder on you," he said, "It should have been over by now."

"But it's not," she said, "And I can't change that as much as I want to."

Suddenly Brody ran up to the car, yelling at them. Matt looked up and rolled down the window.

"He's around the corner," Brody said, "It's going down."

Matt looked at C.J.

"Call the police," he said, before pulling out his gun and leaving the car to run after Brody. They disappeared around the corner and C.J. got her cell phone out to dial 911. She gave the information to the dispatcher and got out of the car, cursing that she had left her gun in her purse rather than carry it with her.

She ran in the direction she had seen them and saw Brody approaching the other side of an alley. Matt with his gun out carefully walked down the dimly lit street. Suddenly, C.J. saw a shadow move behind Matt and pull his gun out.

"Houston…" she yelled.

Houston turned around at the sound of her voice and saw the man aiming a handgun right at his head, his finger on the trigger.

Inside, C.J. screamed.

* * *

After releasing Diablo, the four of them had headed across to their regular spot near the barn where they decided to take a break before heading back to the ranch house.

"I love these trees," C.J. said, as she sat underneath them. The sun began to shed its pink halo that came with its birth on the horizon and to shine down on the meadow, warming the air around them.

"Yeah, they've been here for years," Jed said, "Done a lot of thinking beneath them myself."

Suddenly a memory grabbed at C.J. and she tried to put it away. Matt looked at her.

"What are you thinking about?"

She shook her head.

"Nothing…So what are you guys going to do while I go back to the grind of legal work?"

"I'm going to get the police report on the crash," Matt said, "It's public and I want to see what's been logged and when on this investigation."

"I doubt they're doing anything serious," C.J. said, "It's probably pamphlet size."

"And I'll check to see what tests if any have been done on the vehicle," he said.

"Ask them about the forensics," C.J. said, "If they even know what the word means."

"They probably will disregard anything that points towards attempted murder."

C.J. looked disgusted.

"No doubt," she said, "I was going to call Mercy and check on Jason and Maggie today to see how they're doing."

"C.J…."

She looked up at him.

"You took some big risks back there," he said.

"I know how to handle myself," she said.

"I know that, but that man was angry enough to shoot."

Her eyes met his.

"So was I."

He knew she spoke the truth and that's what scared him.

* * *

C.J. typed on her computer, cutting and pasting excerpts of the declarations from the ranchers into her larger document. She had eaten a sandwich when she returned and had made some tea. Butterfly sat nearby working on her screenplay.

Her phone rang.

"Hi,"

"This is Sheriff Daniel's office."

She stopped typing.

"What's this about?"

"He received a couple complaints about you this morning about altercations that you had on several occasions and wants you to come in and give a statement."

"Does he want to get one on the accident the other night?"

"Eventually…but these complaints are very pressing," the person said, "One of Mr. Kilroy's associates said that you assaulted him in the hallway of the diner?"

"Self-defense," C.J. said, "Did he explain that his own actions had consequences?"

"It would be much better if you came to the office as soon as you can and talked to him yourself."

C.J. sighed, said she'd be in town later and hung up. Butterfly looked up.

"What was that about?"

"The sheriff wants to talk to me about what happened last night."

"But that wasn't your fault," Butterfly said, "He attacked you first."

"I'm not sure they are as worried about that," C.J. said,

"I'll go with you," Butterfly said, "I saw it happen."

"And I'm very glad that you did," C.J. said, "But for now, if you could put your account in writing, that might be more helpful."

Butterfly shrugged.

"Sure…."

They heard a knock on the door.

C.J. went to answer it and saw Thea carrying some food.

"What'd you bring," she said, "It smells great."

"Some soup," Thea said, "Leftover from last night."

C.J. reached for some bowls after asking Butterfly if she wanted some. It looked and smelled delicious. They walked back into the living room where Thea saw the pile of papers and folders on the table.

"You've been working awfully hard," Thea said.

"I've made a lot of headway," she said, "I should be finished ahead of schedule."

"You are getting plenty of rest," Thea said, raising her eye brows.

C.J. nodded.

"And after I come back from Denver with the order for the permanent injunction, I'll get more rest."

"Matt and Jed told me about Diablo," Thea said.

"He's doing fine," C.J. said, "Those men were going to kill him."

"And you stopped them," Thea said.

"I did what I had to do."

"I think you scared Matt," Thea said, "to see you confront that man with a gun pointed at you ."

"I brought my gun too."

"Still, his heart was probably in his throat the entire time."

"I know the feeling," C.J. said quietly, "I've been there enough times myself thinking that he was about to die in front of me."

"I'm not saying you haven't," Thea said, "He just cares about you."

C.J. smiled.

"I know," she said, "But he has to realize that the same risks that I might face are the same risks that he does.

"He went to do some business in town."

C.J. nodded.

"I know, I just got a phone call from Daniels wanting a statement."

"For the accident investigation," Thea asked.

"No, for some of the altercations as he calls them that I've been getting into the past few days."

Thea sighed.

"All self-defense or defense of others," she said, "Surely the law recognizes that."

"I don't think it does when you're defending yourself against people with more power and influence than you have," C.J. said, "That's the part of the legal system I really don't like."

"Butterfly saw what happened in the hallway with that man," Thea said.

"Yeah, she's writing out a statement," C.J. said, "Nothing will come out of this except maybe a reprimand but it's a waste of my time and I don't have much of that."

"Do you want anyone to go with you?"

C.J. smiled.

"Thank you but no, I'll be fine."

"Okay, Butterfly and I will drop by later for dinner if you'd like."

C.J. smiled.

"That'd be great."

* * *

Matt stopped by the sheriff's department to pick up the report only to be told that until the investigation was completed, he couldn't see it.

"That's against the law," Matt said.

Daniels shook his head.

"This isn't L.A. Mr. Houston," he said, "We've got different laws out here."

Matt looked at the wanted posters on Daniels' wall.

"Yeah, I noticed."

"What's that mean?

"Actually, they aren't much different from other towns where those who have the power and the money can commit crimes with impunity and their victims can't get justice."

"That's not how it works here," Daniels protested.

Matt began ticking off examples on his fingers.

"Let's see, you can't even enforce a temporary injunction as ordered by the court," he said, "Then a group of lawyers is threatened."

"Allegedly threatened," Daniels interjected.

"Well, two of them are in the hospital and one of them was accosted in the hallway of the diner last night by one of Kilroy's partners."

Daniels leaned his chair back, causing it to creak.

"He said she came on to him to get him to withdraw the proposal for the project."

"You're kidding right?"

"I never kid, Mr. Houston."

"There was a witness to that incident."

Daniels nodded.

"A child who could have been easily confused by what she saw," he said, "Or misled by someone else."

"Who pays you to say your lines?"

Daniels face reddened and he raised his hand.

"Hey..."

* * *

C.J. got out of the rover and ran immediately into Sydney. She hid a groan behind a smile.

"C.J.," Sydney said, like they were old friends.

"Ms Roth," C.J. said, still walking.

"You can call me Sydney," she said, "Did you read the story?"

C.J. stopped to look at her.

"What story?"

"About how Kilroy's partner is alleging that you sexually harassed him at the diner."

"What?"

"It's front page," Sydney said, "right next to the article on the house fire."

"That must be why the sheriff wants to see me."

"So you're on your way to see him," Sydney said, whipping out her notepad.

C.J. sighed.

"There's two sides of every story, something every professional reporter should know and no one came to me to ask for my account of what happened."

"Oh, I put some quotes that you said last night in there."

"Look, I did not sexually harass Nick Casteel," C.J. said, "That's a little hard to do when he had my face pushed into the wall and my arm pulled behind me and had his hands on me."

"That's not what he said."

"That's hardly surprising, don't you think?"

C.J. kept walking, faster away from Sydney.

* * *

"Look Mr. Houston," Daniels said, "Nick's not filing any charges."

"I wonder why."

"Because he just wants to forget it and move on with the project."

"He can't do that," Matt said, "He knows there's an injunction in place."

"A _temporary_ injunction."

A deputy stuck his head in the room.

"Ms Parsons is here to speak with you," she said.

"Bring her back."

C.J. burst into the room tailed by Sydney and the deputy.

"Deputy Tyler, this isn't a town hall meeting."

"I know sir," she said, "But you know that stopping Ms Roth is like trying to rope a tornado."

Daniels sighed.

"Okay, I believe you and I are finished Mr. Houston," he said, "I'll take what you said about the report under advisement."

Matt folded his arms.

"I'm not leaving."

"Fine," he said, and turned to Sydney, "I read your article this morning on what happened in the diner last night."

Matt looked up.

"Article?"

C.J. sighed.

"Don't ask."

Daniels pulled a folder out from a stack and opened it.

"Ms Parsons, you've been quite busy since you first came to town."

"Yes I have been," she said, "Working on the development case for the local ranchers."

"I'm talking about another kind of busy," he said, "Let's see, you brandished a gun…twice including this morning. Now, the neighbor who reported it said that you did it to save a horse and that the men were also armed."

"They were trespassing on the Wyatt property, which is under the injunction and harming mustangs is probably illegal anyway."

"I talked to some gentlemen who said their only intention was to put the poor creature out of his misery."

"'The poor creature' as you call him is doing just fine out on the range somewhere."

"That might be now, but brandishing a weapon like some form of vigilante is not allowed in these parts."

"I'll keep that in mind," she said.

"About that incident last night," Daniels said, "Mr. Casteel isn't pressing any assault and battery charges…"

"What," she said, "He assaulted me and he told me what he would do if I didn't drop off this case and it's a felony even here."

Sydney started writing on her notepad.

"That's what you said, but he provided a different story and frankly, Casteel has a standing in this town…"

"That I don't have," she said.

"And women like yourself…"

She folded her arms.

"And what the hell does that mean?"

Matt put his hand on her arm.

"C.J…"

She shook it off.

"No, I want to hear what this man has to share about women," she said, "though I'll tell you now it's nothing that I or any woman hasn't heard before."

"That may be the case Ms Parsons, but I'm well aware of your particular history and this isn't the first time you've accused a man of inappropriate conduct."

"What exactly are you saying," Matt said.

"No, I think this interview's over Houston," she said, "I'm not explaining myself to some Neanderthal with a badge about that or any other chapter of my life."

Daniels pointed at Matt.

"And you had a federal warrant for kidnapping."

Matt struggled to control his anger.

"Actually, obstruction of justice, which goes to show how much trouble you have with the facts."

"Okay I'm done here," C.J. said, then turned around to face Daniels, "but you tell your friend Nick next time you bump into each other at the corner bar that if he comes near me again, I will stop him whatever way I have to do so. And that's a promise."

She looked at Sydney.

"And there's a quote for your story."

She walked out. Matt gave Daniels one last look and followed her.

The sheriff shook his head.

"Outsiders," Daniels said, to Sydney before she left. She decided not to quote him.

* * *

C.J. walked down the street. She heard Matt call her.

"C.J."

He caught up to her, with Sydney on his tail.

"What," C.J. said, turning around.

"About what happened back there…"

"I'd rather not talk about it," she said, "I've got to look up some files at City Hall."

"I'll help you," he said, "I know how unorganized most municipal records are when it comes to trying to find something."

"What are you looking for," Sydney said.

"Just records on land deals in the area during the past 10 years."

"While Parker's been mayor?"

C.J. smiled.

"Precisely, now if you'll excuse us."

Sydney touched Matt's arm.

"I'll be in touch later."

As Matt and C.J. walked to City Hall, she looked at him.

"It looks like things are coming along nicely for you two."

He narrowed his eyes.

"What are you talking about?"

"It's fine if you two hook up but remember what Joe said," she said, "She's the town heart breaker."

"I can take care of my own heart, thank you."

They headed up the steps. He opened the door for her and she went inside.

"The room's this way," she said.

They checked in with the woman there who silently led them in the room. Matt looked around the room.

"I think I might have made an understatement about the condition of municipal record rooms."

She shrugged.

"This one's not bad," she said, "I created a loose cataloging system."

"So what are you looking for?"

She went to one of the shelves.

"Land deals…Parker's signature… anything to do with either Kilroy or Casteel."

He pulled out a box of files and took it to a nearby table. She looked for one she had searched the previous day and pulled it out. They worked in silence for a while.

"C.J…"

She looked up from her reading.

"I just wanted to say that I'm sorry about what happened back there."

She put her file down.

"There's nothing to be sorry about," C.J. said, "Daniels is hardly the first man to think that women ask for it when men try to hurt them."

"You can file charges against Nick," he said.

She laughed but her eyes didn't.

"No, it won't go anywhere and it will accomplish what Nick and Kilroy wants which is to stop me from stopping them. I just want to focus on finishing the writ and getting it filed in Denver."

"And you're almost done with that," Matt said.

She nodded.

"I need some more documentation and anything I found here would really help."

He continued reading through documents. The door opened and Bonnie walked in.

"I'm on break from the store and someone said you were down here so I thought I'd help you," she said, sitting down, "Oh my, what a mess this place is. What are you looking for, a needle?"

C.J. smiled.

"Essentially as many needles as we can find," she said, "Parker's signature on any legal papers."

Bonnie joined them in searching the documents.

"I think I found something," she said before too much time had passed.

C.J. looked over her shoulder at a document about five years old with Parker's signature on it for the purchase of a parcel of land on the other end of the valley.

"Any conditional permit applications?"

Bonnie flipped through it.

"I think this was a day spa that went out of business about two years after it was built," she said, "We already had one that was getting all the business."

C.J. took it over to a copy machine.

"Here's another," Matt said, holding up a document, "This is another Kilroy project, but it's on land between two towns."

"Oh I think I remember that," Bonnie said, "That was supposed to be another resort but it was never built."

"Why?"

"Lots of things happened if I recall," she said, "I'll ask around and see if anyone has a better memory than I do."

"Look at this," C.J. said, pointed to a faded signature, "Does Daniels have any relatives in planning?"

Bonnie shrugged.

"I'll ask about that too," she said, "I'd better get going."

C.J. hugged her.

"Thank you for your help."

"Anytime," she said, "This is my fight too."

"And we're going to win it," C.J. said.

"Oh, I ran into Sydney Roth outside," she said, "She wanted to talk to Matt about scheduling his interview. Is she doing that article on you?"

"Yes she is," he said, "I'm trying to get her to focus more on the land fight but she doesn't seem too interested."

Bonnie shook her head.

"Be careful with that one," she said, "She should come with a warning label"

"I'll keep that in mind," Matt said, smiling.

* * *

Several hours and a lot of paper shuffling later, C.J. and Matt left City Hall.

"Thea and Butterfly are coming in for dinner," she said, "If you'd like to join us."

"Sure," he said.

Sydney walked up to them.

"I filed my story about this morning," she said, "So if you want to do that interview."

"I'm meeting some friends at the diner if you'd like to come along."

She nodded.

"Good, then I'll have more people to interview about you."

C.J. laughed.

"Go easy on them," she said.

They headed to the diner and saw Thea and Butterfly sitting at a booth.

"Bonnie's joining us," Thea said, "So I asked for a bigger table."

"We brought company too," C.J. said.

Thea looked at Sydney.

"I see," she said, "You're welcome to join us."

The waitress set up a larger table for them in the back.

Butterfly looked up from her notebook at Sydney.

"You're taking notes too?"

Sydney nodded.

"I read your article about last night," Butterfly said, "You were totally wrong about what happened."

"I'm just there to give both sides of the story."

Butterfly folded her arms.

"Then where's my side," she said, "I saw it happen."

"Butterfly… it's okay," C.J. said, "Daniels didn't believe any of us."

"Why," Butterfly asked, "Because he thinks I'm a kid?"

"Something like that," C.J. said, "But thank you for helping me."

"I saw how he acted," Sydney said, "Like women are all liars."

"Aren't we," C.J. said, "And my past as it is didn't help matters."

"I read all about it," Sydney said, "I'm sorry that happened to you."

C.J. shrugged.

"I've had plenty of time to deal with it and move on."

Matt saw the pain flash in her eyes that others missed. He rubbed her shoulder.

"And your warrant for kidnapping," Sydney said, looking at Matt.

"He was just trying to protect me, that's all," C.J. said, "I owe him my life."

"She's saved mine enough times."

"And they've both saved mine," Butterfly chimed in.

Bonnie came up and joined them, throwing Sydney a frosty look.

"I read your article," she said, "Totally off-base. A man threatens a woman and you take his side. How typical if he looks good in pants."

"I didn't take any side," Sydney said, "I just wrote the story."

"How did your paper hunting go today," Thea asked.

"Great," C.J. said, "Bonnie's got an eye for it. She found some very important documents in that slush pile."

Sydney's interest piqued.

"Like what?"

"You can read them in the brief filing next week."

Sydney brightened.

"So anyway, I'm doing an article on Matt here and I might call some of you for some quotes about him."

Bonnie laughed.

"Come off it, Sydney," she said, "I know what happened to Joe after you did a profile on him and his auto repair shop."

"We parted on good terms," Sydney said, "and it was an excellent piece if I do say so myself."

"The article or him?"

"Look, it's not often we have a verifiable celebrity in this town and it would make a great…article," Sydney said, "Besides, C.J. gave some comments about his sex appeal."

"I did," C.J. said, "And he did break the mold. Just ask anyone in his little black book."

Matt looked at her in consternation.

"I don't have a black book," he said, "I lost it in the car fire on that case two years ago."

"That must have been difficult to report as a loss on your insurance form," Sydney said.

"I only have room for one woman in my life," he said, simply.

"At a time," C.J. said, "But he gives his relationships everything he's got and he truly loves and respects women as a group and smart women really appreciate men like that."

"Maybe you should be writing this," Sydney said.

"No, I really can't," C.J. said, "I wouldn't know. But any woman who does hurt him will have to answer to me. Including you."

"Wow," Butterfly said, "Way to go. That's telling her."

"Those are pretty powerful words, Ms Parsons," Matt said.

She looked at him.

"I never said I didn't care about you," she said, "I just want you to find a woman who makes you happy."

The waitress brought them their trays of food. Sydney sighed, as she poked through her french fries.

"I know what people have said around town about me being the "journalistic jilter" but I really cared about all of them."

Bonnie snorted.

"Honey, Joe's still crying his eyes out when he's working underneath people's cars where he thinks no one can see his heart breaking."

"Well, we're from two different worlds," Sydney said, "He has a great profile to remember me by and a few other things."

"And Matt's a personal friend of mine, so you watch your step with him," Bonnie said, waving her fork.

"I'll take that into consideration," Sydney said, "But if anything does happen, that's really between me and him."

Matt sighed.

"Wait, don't I get a voice here…"

Jed walked into the diner.

"I thought I'd find you here," he said, "There's a press conference about to start at City Hall."

Sydney looked up.

"Damn, my editor always forgets to beep me on these things."

C.J. put her head in her hands.

"I wonder what stunt they're trying to pull now."

Matt put down his napkin.

"I think we're just going to have to go there and find out."


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter 17--I'm finished with the latest chapter in this story. I hope you enjoy it and thanks for the feedback!

* * *

They all left the diner and headed off to City Hall to see what was going on. A crowd that spilled out of the parking lot and surrounded the building met them. Near the entrance of the building, two men set up a podium and sound system.

"It looks like someone's going to make a speech," Butterfly said.

Parker came out followed by several members of the city council and they stood next to the podium gazing nervously at the audience below them. Sydney ran up the steps followed by a young man with several cameras around his neck to get a better view of the action. Several deputies stood in their path, forcing them to back down several steps.

Matt and C.J. stood near the bottom of the steps with the others waiting to see what would happen next. Finally, Parker straightened his suit and walked up to the podium, tapping the microphone.

"I'm here to address some allegations that some men tried to shoot one of the mustangs this morning on what used to be the Wyatt Ranch," he said.

C.J. folded her arms.

"I'd like to hear his version of events."

Parker started his story after clearing his throat.

"I'd just like to say that nothing of the sort happened this morning. Three men came across a wounded mustang, a stallion, caught in a downed barbed wire fence. After witnessing the obvious distress of the horse, they made the very difficult decision to attempt to euthanize it."

"They were going to shoot Diablo," a voice yelled out from the crowd.

Others joined in until they became a chorus of dissent. Parker tapped the microphone again to quiet them.

"Someone's got to run against that guy for mayor," Bonnie said, in disgust.

"That someone should be you," C.J. said.

"I'd break all the furniture in frustration the first day in office," Bonnie said, "if I had to deal with Sheriff Daniels and the majority of the city council."

The mayor continued even as the heckling from the crowd grew louder.

"Fortunately, the horse extricated himself from the fencing and managed to gallop off before undergoing euthanization."

"I've had enough of his storytelling," Jed said, "Hey Parker."

Bonnie put her hand on her husband's arm.

"Honey be careful," she said.

"I'm going to be just fine," he said, "The record has to be set straight."

He walked up the steps then stopped to face the crowd. The people immediately hushed to listen to him.

Parker looked down at Jed and signaled the deputies. They walked towards Jed until they stood several steps above him.

Jed addressed the crowd.

"Did you know that those men were going to shoot a perfectly healthy stallion who's been part of the valley for years?"

"How would you know," Parker said through the sound system.

"Because I was there, and one of those lawyers who was nearly killed the other night saved him from those men."

The crowd murmured.

"Yeah that's true," another person yelled, "My neighbor saw those men earlier harassing the mustangs."

Parker looked nervously for Daniels and gestured for him to come to the podium.

"Sheriff Daniels will address your concerns about these unsubstantiated allegations."

Daniels stepped up to speak.

"Yes, there's no evidence to support that the men maliciously targeted the mustangs for harassment," he said, "In contrary, it is the department's belief that they were simply trying to alleviate the pain and suffering of one of them."

"That's not true and you know it," Jed said, "I saw it myself. These men had their weapons drawn on a horse which simply needed someone with a pair of wire cutters to set him free."

C.J. left the others and walked up to where Jed stood. Matt followed her with his eyes. She looked at the crowd below her.

"He's telling the truth," she said, "These men would have shot a horse that's been a fixture in this region longer than they've even been here. This was not their first attempt at harassing and harming the mustangs and it's not the first time those of us who've tried to protect those horses had guns drawn on us."

"They've definitely got the crowd's attention," Bonnie said.

"Yeah they do," Matt said.

Daniels gestured at his deputies to go down closer to C.J. and Jed.

Butterfly's eyes widened.

"They're not going to get arrested are they?"

Jed and C.J. watched as the deputies came down towards them and the crowd pressed closer in front of them.

"All right, clear the stairs," one of the deputies said, "You're obstructing the movement of passersby."

"What movement," C.J. said, "No one's coming in or out of City Hall."

The crowd inched closer to the steps.

"Now you're inciting a riot," the deputy said.

Sydney moved up to where C.J. and Jed stood on the steps.

"Are you willing to go to jail for the mustangs?"

C.J. looked at her.

"No one's going to jail," she said, "We're just setting the record straight. Diablo was not badly injured, certainly not enough to be put out of any misery."

"Really."

"Yes, really," C.J. said, "These men are lying through their teeth in defense of other men who brought guns into an area declared off-limits by a judge and Diablo probably got himself tangled in that fence trying to protect the other mustangs."

The deputies walked up to them.

"Come and get a move on," they said, "Or we will take you in."

C.J. crossed her arms.

"You can't," she said, "This is a free country and people are allowed to protest and certainly allowed to set the record straight on the deliberate delivery of misinformation."

Suddenly, more deputies appeared from behind City Hall. C.J. looked up surprised that Silver Lode even had that many law enforcement officers at its disposal.

"You have a minute to disperse or we will arrest you," Daniels said through the microphone.

The deputies surrounded Jed and C.J. The crowd started protesting that action.

"You can't arrest people for speaking out," a man said, "This isn't Cuba."

"How dare they do this in our town," a woman said, "Recall Sheriff Daniels."

"I'm not moving," C.J. said.

The others looked at what was unfolding.

"This is sooo cool," Butterfly said, "Is C.J. getting arrested?"

Matt grew worried. He looked at Thea.

"I think there's going to be trouble for them if they do get arrested."

C.J. and Jed didn't disperse so the deputies followed Daniels' orders and began handcuffing them. The two didn't try to stop them but the crowd began getting even louder and moving closer to where they stood. C.J. closed her eyes when the handcuffs clicked around her wrists but willed herself to stand still.

"Let's rush them," a man said.

"I'm with you," another said.

Sydney stepped up to one of the deputies.

"What charges will Sheriff Daniels be filing against them," she asked.

"Get out of my way miss or you'll be joining them," the deputy said.

"Wait, there's a right to freedom of the press in this country too."

"Go take it to a judge," the deputy said and started handcuffing her too.

"Hey, gets your hands off of me," she said.

C.J. looked at the flailing journalist.

"Go easy on the guy or they'll charge you with resisting arrest and you'll never get out."

Sydney blanched but kept still.

"We're going to have to take them through City Hall and out the back way to the jail," one deputy said, "We'll never get through this crowd without being mobbed."

* * *

The deputies led the three people they had handcuffed up the stairs to the building's entrance and the crowd followed them up the steps, forcing Parker and the city council members to retreat inside the building and bolt the door.

"You can't keep us out of a building we pay for with our tax dollars," someone yelled.

Matt looked at Thea and Bonnie.

"We've got to get to the jail," he said, "They're not going to be safe there."

Thea nodded.

"Let's go."

They worked their way out of the crowd and hurried to the sheriff's office.

* * *

C.J., Jed and a still protesting Sydney were led down the hallways at City Hall towards the back by deputies with Daniels and Parker following them.

"Let's get them in lockup," Daniels said.

"Are we going to have enough armed forces to quell the riot outside?"

* * *

Butterfly walked next to Bonnie as they headed towards the jail.

"Can I borrow your cell phone?"

"Why?"

"I know who to call for help."

Bonnie gave her the phone. Butterfly pressed quite a few numbers before getting the one she wanted. She listened to the ringing on the other end until it stopped.

"American Civil Liberties Union, Denver office."

* * *

Kilroy and Nick watched from afar.

"I had them pegged for troublemakers all along and now we can prove it," Kilroy said.

"Now we have them where we want them," Nick said.

"What do you mean?"

"A lot of people disappear from jails," Nick said, "They're very dangerous places."

* * *

Matt walked into the sheriff's office and ran into Deputy Tyler.

"I'm here to see C.J. Parsons," he said, "She was just arrested."

Tyler looked puzzled.

"She's not here yet," she said, "They're probably in transit."

Matt sat down in the lobby where the others joined him.

"We'll wait."

* * *

Daniels and the deputies led the three of them into the back door of his office building where there were two small holding cells. A deputy unlocked one of them and the others pushed them into the cell.

"Hey, don't push," Sydney said.

"Aren't they going to book us," C.J. asked.

Jed shrugged.

"Are they going to take mug shots," Sydney said, "Can't they just use the photo from my press pass?"

C.J. just sat on one of the bunks to think.

* * *

Butterfly handed the phone back to Bonnie.

"Who'd you call?"

Butterfly smiled.

"Reinforcements."

The rest of them looked at her.

"This girl in my class was kicked out because she wore one of those...tee-shirts and the ACLU filed a lawsuit on her behalf…"

"You called the ACLU," Bonnie said.

Butterfly nodded.

"They're looking into it right now."

Matt smiled despite the concern gnawing at him.

"Thanks Butterfly, that's good thinking."

* * *

C.J. watched as Sydney paced the jail cell.

"You're making me tired just watching you."

Sydney turned to face her.

"I've never been arrested before let alone sitting in jail."

C.J. shrugged.

"I've been," she said, "And what I learned is that even if you're nervous or scared to death, you don't ever show it to anyone or you'll get the crap beat out of you."

"That's reassuring."

"Don't worry," Jed said, "We've got friends helping us. It's going to be just fine."

"You have friends," Sydney said, "Everyone in this town hates me because they think I've broken every male heart in town."

C.J. stifled a laugh.

"We'll be fine as long as we sit tight."

* * *

Matt's cell phone buzzed. He answered it after seeing that it was Brody.

"What is it," he said, "I don't have much time to talk to you."

"You busy relaxing?"

"No, actually we're at the local jail," he said, "Some folks including C.J. got arrested."

"Arrested? C.J.? What happened?"

Matt sighed.

"Don't ask," he said, "So what's up?"

"Not much, except we're clearing your caseload. It should be caught up by the time you get back."

"That's great," Matt said, "Because I'm not sure when I'll be returning to L.A."

"Do you want me to fly out and help you spring C.J.?"

"No, it will be fine, thanks," Matt said, "But I've got to get her out. I have a feeling if I don't get her out tonight, something's going to happen."

A silence met him.

"It's that bad out there?"

"It's not good," Matt said, "These developers are ruthless and they have some friends in powerful places."

* * *

Sydney finally stopped pacing the cell and sat down on one of the bunks. She looked at her nails.

"Trashed my manicure job," she said, "Why do they have to be so rough when they handcuff you?"

Jed and C.J. looked at each other.

"I'm sure Matt's working on it."

C.J. nodded. Sydney brightened.

"You mean we might get out soon?"

C.J. looked at her.

"Of course. By law they have to take us before a judge and charge us or release us within several days."

"We might have to stay here for days," Sydney said.

"You won't," C.J. said, "Your newspaper will probably send someone to bail you out soon and it always looks bad to throw reporters in jail."

"You have a point."

C.J. laughed.

"As for lawyers," she said, "A lot of folks would like to throw all of us in the clinker and throw away the key."

Jed rubbed her shoulder, knowing beneath it all, she felt fear.

* * *

Bonnie's phone rang. She picked it up.

"It's for you Butterfly," she said, "It's the ACLU."

Butterfly walked away while talking on the phone.

"So how long will they keep them in jail?"

Matt shrugged.

"They can't keep them longer than a couple of days without a hearing before a judge," he said, "But we need to get them out sooner."

"They'll be okay," Bonnie said, "Jed will take care of them."

"C.J. won't want to be taken care of," Matt said.

Butterfly walked back.

"They're coming here," she said, "But they're going to call the sheriff first and tell him."

Both Bonnie and Matt looked up.

"Who?"

"The ACLU in Denver," Butterfly said, "Someone at the protest filmed the whole thing and already put it up on You Tube."

"Oh goodness, the wonders of technology," Bonnie said.

"Yeah and they say it's a blatant violation of the Constitution's right to free speech to arrest people for speaking out."

"It's nice to know someone remembers what the Constitution is," Thea said, shaking her head.

* * *

Daniels sat in his office.

"Are you going to charge them," Parker said.

He sighed.

"I can only keep them a certain period of time," he said.

"They tried to start a riot at City Hall," Parker said.

"That's up for a jury to decide even if we do charge them," he said, "And I'm not sure that anyone in this county's jury pool is going to convict them on anything. You saw that crowd."

"You mean unruly mob."

Daniels leaned back in his chair.

"That unruly mob as you call it is filled with registered voters, which means they get summoned to jury duty at the county seat once a year. Some of those folks could wind up among the 12 angry men and women who acquit these people."

"That's doubtful," Parker said.

"Perhaps, but it's also an election year for both of us."

Parker sighed.

"Then how are you going to handle it?"

Daniels just looked at him. Tyler popped her head in.

"Sheriff," she said, "There's several urgent phone calls for you."

"Who is it?"  
"The ACLU on line one, the _Denver Post_ on line two and channel 8 from Denver on line three…"

Daniels waved his hands.

"All right," he said, "I'll take the calls."

He said to Parker.

"Excuse me, I've got trouble coming."

* * *

Matt looked at his watch.

"It's been several hours," he said, "Where's Daniels?"

"He's probably holed up in City Hall with Parker trying to figure out how to do damage control," Bonnie said.

Matt walked up to the window and Tyler looked up at him.

"When's the sheriff coming in," he asked.

"Sheriff's in but he's busy on the phone with a bunch of people calling about what just happened sir."

"What kind of people?"

"I really can't say sir but a lot of media folk and some crazy folks from that civil liberties group."

"What's the bail been set at?"

She shrugged.

"Don't know sir, you'll have to ask the sheriff when he's ready to talk to you."

Matt went back to his seat.

"Sheriff's hiding in his office fielding phone calls from a lot of irate people."

Butterfly's head shot up.

"I knew it!"

"So what can we do, Matt?"

He sighed.

"Hope they storm in, embarrass these people and save her life."

He rested his head on top of his hands and Thea patted his shoulder.

"It's going to be okay," she said, "We've got to have faith that this will all work out."

He nodded.

"I'm not that good at sitting around and doing nothing."

Thea smiled.

"Neither is C.J.," she said, "She told me that this morning."

Matt shook his head.

"She's certainly made that clear today," Matt said.

* * *

C.J. sat in her cell, closing her eyes. She knew they had to get out of jail soon before their adversaries could take advantage of the situation. Sydney had begun pacing again but C.J. ignored her and tried to relax. Difficult to do in a jail, so she tried harder.

Matt stared at the gun aimed at his face, awaiting the moment when darkness would claim him. He heard the man pull the trigger and his life passed before his mind in a split second while he waited for it to end. His eyes caught C.J. standing there, fear imprinted on her face. His heart ached suddenly as he took his last look at her.

He waited for what felt like forever but nothing happened. He just heard the click of the gun and then another as the man pulled the trigger again before realizing the gun had jammed. Matt took advantage of the man's confusion and grabbed his arms, knocking the gun out of his hand and slamming him quickly on the ground.

Brody and several police officers ran up and pinned the guy on the ground, kicking the gun away from him. Matt bent over, the adrenalin leaving his body as quickly as it had come. C.J. ran up to him. She wrapped him in her arms and he rested his head against her chest as she spoke softly to him.

"It's going to be all right," she said, "You're still here."

"I thought I was going to die," he said, sinking to the ground.

"Not tonight," she said, stroking his head, "Are you okay?"

His eyes focused and he took in the sight of her.

"Now I am," he said, standing up. She stayed beside him.

"I'll take you home," she said softly as she led him away from the spot that had almost claimed him.

* * *

C.J. looked up, her face flushing at the memories which had slipped into her mind when she wasn't looking. She sighed and pushed them back in the corner of her mind so she could focus on the present at hand.

"Do you think we'll get out here soon?"

Looking up, C.J. saw Sydney sitting on a bunk looking worried. Then a deputy came in the cell with some keys jangling.

"Ms Roth," he said.

Sydney jumped off from the bunk as the deputy unlocked the door.

"You're free to go," he said, "No charges will be filed against you and a representative of your newspaper is waiting for you in the lobby."

She followed the deputy but looked back at C.J. and Jed.

"I'll tell everyone you're okay," she said as she left the holding area.

C.J. looked at Jed.

"At least it's quieter now."

* * *

Bonnie returned with some coffee from the diner. She handed cups to Matt and Thea.

"Still no word?"

Matt shook his head.

"They'll be okay," Bonnie said, sitting next to him, "They've both got good heads on their shoulders."

"I wish she'd been more careful," Matt said.

"It wasn't their fault," Bonnie said, "They were arrested without cause."

"That doesn't seem to matter in this town," Matt said, "And if we don't get C.J. out, that leaves her wide open if those developers try to get her out of the picture for good."

"We won't let that happen," she said.

"She's been pushing the envelope so much lately," Matt said, "Ever since we got back from the islands last year. As if she's got something to prove."

"She's probably trying to reclaim herself," Bonnie said, "To show herself that she's as formidable a person as she's always been."

"It scares me to see her like this," he admitted.

"Some of the dangers which come with your job have probably scared her too."

He nodded, understanding.

* * *

They got back to the beach house and C.J. took off her jacket, laying it on the chair. She looked at Matt who glanced around his living room as if he were seeing at it for the first time. She took his hand in hers and it felt cold so she rubbed it to warm it with her own.

"Are you going to be okay," she said.

He nodded.

"I'm fine," he said, "I've come close to death so many times, but it never fails to hit me when it doesn't happen."

She looked at him, her eyes glistening.

"I thought you were going to die," she said, "And so many thoughts ran through my head so quickly."

"I know the feeling," he said, "But I'm fine now."

She just looked at him for a long moment. He moved closer to her when he saw tears flowing out of her eyes and he reached up to touch them with his fingers, to brush them away. His fingers felt both rough and soft against her skin and she closed her eyes as he stroked her face.

"I'm definitely fine now that you're here," he said, softly.

She smiled, amid her tears and wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him towards her so she felt wrapped in his scent which she loved. He placed his hands around her waist, watching her.

And then she kissed him.


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter 18---I've been busy writing this weekend so here's another chapter. I hope you like it and thanks for the feedback.

* * *

C.J. blinked.

Why had that memory slipped inside her mind while she sat inside a jail cell? Her face burned as she pushed it as far inside the back of her mind as she could send it. She placed her head in her hands as if that would help further that process along. Still, the vision of what she had done intruded in her thoughts. She got up and started pacing, hoping that would make it go away. Kissing him that night had been the biggest mistake in her life. She reconsidered that assessment and decided that maybe it hadn't been the biggest, but definitely ranked on her top ten list. She wondered how high on his list Matt had placed it.

She looked down at Jed where he sat on the other bunk.

"How long have we been in here," she asked.

He looked at his watch.

"A couple of hours," he said, "Ironic to be sitting in here considering how many people I brought to jail."

She smiled.

"I've kept some people out of jail."

He laughed then his face grew serious.

"If we're stuck here, I'll make sure nothing happens to you."

She looked at him.

"Thanks."

She sat back down on the bunk. A deputy came back and opened the door.

"You're being released," he said, "No charges have been filed. You are free to go."

They left their cell without looking back.

* * *

Matt waited in the lobby with the others for news about what would happen to Jed and C.J. Daniels walked out into the lobby and all eyes were on him as he cleared his throat waiting for his audience.

"We've decided to release them into your custody," he said, "But consider this a warning, that next time they conduct themselves in such a fashion, they'll spend three days cooling their heels in jail."

Matt started to say something then stopped deciding it would wait until Jed and C.J. were safely out of custody.

The door opened and the two prisoners walked into the room where the others waited.

"Thank goodness, you're out," Bonnie said.

She hugged her husband.

"The accommodations weren't too bad," Jed joked.

Matt looked over at C.J.

"How are you doing," he asked.

She looked distant, her mind clearly elsewhere.

"Fine," she said, "I really have to get back to work."

"Can't that wait?"

She shook her head.

Daniels looked at her.

"Are you going to behave in a more professional manner young lady?"

C.J. looked at him.

"I can only promise that I'm going to advocate for my clients," she said, "Is that enough of an answer for you?"

"I don't want to see you here again."

Matt intervened.

"Look, she's given you her answer," he said, "Now go tell your goons you can't deliver that last member of the legal team like you promised."

Daniels face reddened.

"Hey, what gives you the right to…"

Matt sighed.

"We both know who you're really working for in this town and it's not the residents."

"I don't have to listen to this self-righteous nonsense from an outsider."

"No you don't," Matt said, "All you have to do is remember that you were elected to protect and serve the people of this county not select individuals with deep pockets."

C.J. looked at the both of them.

"Am I free to go?"

Daniels looked at her and waved his hand.

"By all means, go," he said, "But my warning stands."

"So does my promise," C.J. said, leaving the building.

* * *

She began walking out of the building. Matt walked alongside her.

"You just spent a couple of hours in jail," he said.

She turned around to look at him.

"That's two hours wasted that I've got to make it up."

He grabbed her arm.

"What's the matter," he said.

She glared at him.

"Nothing," she said, "Except I've got some legal briefs due in a couple of days and I want to get them done."

He sighed.

"C.J., you were injured in an accident several days ago, you've been working non-stop since and you've spent today getting arrested."

"I'm fine," she said, "I've got to get my things out of the car and get back to work."

"You're going to spend the night in the diner?"

She rolled her eyes.

"No, I have a bed back at the ranch for that," she said, "What I'm going to do is to spend a couple of hours getting some work done where I can get some peace and quiet."

He crossed his arms.

"You can't drive home by yourself," he said, "I don't want anything more to happen to you."

She crossed her arms right back.

"I can take care of myself," she said, "I can't spend my whole life with people looking after me."

"A woman like yourself shouldn't be alone at night. It's not safe."

She narrowed her eyes. And he knew immediately he had said the wrong thing.

"A woman like myself," she said, "What does that mean?"

He looked chagrined.

"I didn't mean..."

"Look, I know you think I'm not the kind of woman that can exercise good judgment," she said, "I get myself into trouble that you have to extricate me from …"

"I think you handle yourself just fine," Matt said, "but..."

"And you think I don't know my own limitations," she continued.

"When did I say that?"

She paused, searching for the words.

"And I know how you feel about me as a woman…"

His mind raced to keep up.

"C.J., what the hell are you talking about?"

She looked at him a moment, then looked away so he wouldn't see her face. Then the realization hit him and he closed his eyes for a moment.

"C.J…"

Sydney walked up to them, breathlessly.

"God, I'm so glad to get out of there," she said, "That place was a nightmare."

C.J. and Matt looked at her.

"I've got to go," C.J. said.

"We're not finished," Matt said.

She looked at him, her eyes flashing.

"Oh yes, we are."

She walked off toward the diner leaving him in her wake.

"I guess the place got to her," Sydney said.

He scratched his head.

"So your editor didn't fire you?"

She laughed.

"If he tried, I'd tell his wife about our little thing last year."

"You…"

"Oh no," she said, "We got together just before he got married. I'm not that kind of woman no matter what people say about me around town."

Thea and Butterfly caught up to them.

"Matt, where's C.J."

"She's back working at the diner," he said, "I've got to go do that errand at City Hall."

Thea watched him leave while Sydney followed him.

* * *

Matt walked up to City Hall.

"Where are you going," Sydney said, trying to keep up.

"I'm going to be looking in some files," he said.

"What files?

He turned around and glanced at her.

"Why are you following me?"

"I'm curious as to how an investigator like yourself works," she said.

"Most of the time it's boring and tedious work," he said, walking up the steps.

"I find that difficult to believe."

"It's true," Matt said, "The media makes it sound like it's all about chases, fist fights and glamorous lifestyles spent in exotic places but it's a lot of legwork, meticulous study of documents and sitting inside vehicles for hours or days on end through all different kinds of weather."

"Don't you carry a gun?"

"Of course I do," Matt said, "But being an investigator is more about using your mind than anything else."

They walked inside City Hall.

"So what documents are you looking for?"

"Anything tied to Calvin Parker and a planner named Daniels."

She nodded.

"Related to Sheriff Daniels, right?"

"It wouldn't surprise me after seeing how things operate in this town."

Sydney shrugged.

"Silver Lode's not all bad," she said, "It's not _Peyton Place_."

"What?"

They met up with the woman in charge of the city's records and she led them into the storage room.

"More people in and out of this storage room in the past couple of days than the rest of this year," she grumbled before leaving them.

Matt walked over to where he and C.J. had left off during their previous visit. He took down one box and sifted through some documents.

"So if you find their names on these documents, so what?"

He looked at her.

"Are you just going to watch me look at files?"

She sat in a chair.

"Consider it research for my feature story."

* * *

C.J. sat in the diner looking at her laptop screen. She felt tears threaten several times but she just concentrated on the task in front of her. The words in front of her blurred and she tried to refocus her eyes. She sipped from her cola to ease the dryness in her throat.

Thea came in and walked up to her.

"Mind if I take a seat," she said, "I've got to rest my feet a moment."

C.J. looked up at her and nodded.

"Butterfly's helping Bonnie in the store for a while," she said, "We're both staying in town until it's time for you to go back to the ranch."

"I'll be fine…"

"Matt's right, it's not safe for you to travel alone at night."

"He just doesn't trust that I can take care of myself."

"I think he's just worried because of all that's happened," Thea said, "He just cares about you. That's all."

"Yeah well, I just need to do this so I know that I can," C.J. said, rubbing her eyes.

"Are you getting enough sleep?"

"I get plenty of sleep," C.J. said, "Besides, in another couple of days, this brief will be sent to a federal judge in Denver and then I can rest."

"But you're going up there to give your oral presentation."

"Yes, but the other attorneys will be able to help with that," she said, "At least that's not all on me."

Thea smiled.

"You've done amazingly well with what's been on your plate."

"I wish Houston would just accept that," C.J. said, "And stop treating me like I'm fragile and I'm going to break."

Thea looked at her closely.

"He's very protective of you sure," she said, "But I think he has a lot of confidence in you too. He's very proud of you, I do know that."

"We had another argument," C.J. said, "Actually it's been the same argument."

"C.J., when did these arguments start?"

C.J. put her head in her hands.

"The night of his birthday party," she said, "Actually, it was the early morning after, when we were out on a stakeout and he nearly got killed."

"Oh dear."

"A man aimed his gun at him and almost shot him but it jammed. Matt grabbed him and threw him on the ground. I saw it happen."

"That must have been very difficult."

C.J. pushed a lock of her hair back.

"I don't know what happened when we got back to his house. I was so relieved that he wasn't dead that I…"

Thea nodded.

"You made a move on him."

C.J. looked at the older woman.

"How did you know?"

Thea smiled.

"I've done it myself, a time or two in my life. It's not an uncommon situation after your life flashes in front of you."

"It was just a kiss…at least it started out that way."

"What did Matt do?"

"He kissed back…but then when things got a bit more physical…"

Her face grew flushed.

"You pulled away?"

"I had a flashback," she said, quietly, "Suddenly I didn't see him at all."

"How did he take it?"

C.J. grimaced.

"It dampened the moment for sure."

"But surely he understood…"

C.J. looked uncertain.

"I was so embarrassed at myself, I just told him that I had only kissed him because I wanted to get over what Andre had done."

"Oh."

"I lied to him," she said, "But I think he believed me. At least he seemed to. He told me he couldn't go any further because that wasn't enough of a reason. And that solved the problem."

Thea nodded, then looked at her closely.

"C.J., what exactly are your feelings about him?"

She ran her hand through her hair.

"I don't know…I don't trust what I feel anymore. One minute, I really wanted him, the next I was afraid of him. What exactly does that make me?"

"A woman who's been through a very traumatic experience who's trying to push through that to share something in herself with a man she cares about."

C.J. shook her head.

"And I really believe he cares a lot about you in return," Thea said, "But you need to be honest with him about how you feel and what happened."

"I'm having trouble being honest with myself," C.J. said, "I don't know if I can be honest with anyone else."

* * *

Matt put another document on a growing pile. Sydney watched him with her chin resting on her hand.

"How many of those have you found," she said.

"About ten," Matt said.

"All linking Parker and this Daniels guy to different land sales?"

Matt nodded.

"The only problem is that none of these projects were ever built," he said, "Except for one that shut down after one year."

"That's odd," she said.

"I don't know what it means," Matt said, "But C.J. might."

"She's not here."

"I noticed," he said, "I'll get copies made and bring them to her."

Sydney casually put her hand on his arm.

"Why don't we just wait a little while first."

He looked at her hand on his arm.

"Listen…you're a very nice lady…"

"I wouldn't say I was a lady," Sydney said, "That's a bit archaic."

He sighed.

"Maybe," he said, "But is your interest in me professional from the perspective or personal from the perspective of a…"

"woman," she finished for him.

"Which is it?"

"Why not both," she said, trailing her finger along his arm, "Why not combine business with pleasure?"

"It never works."

"Why do you say that," she said, "You're an attractive man? I'm sure women flock all around you."

"Listen, the article in that magazine," Matt said, "It doesn't mean anything. My cousin submitted my name as a joke and it snowballed."

"They interviewed you for the story," Sydney said.

Matt nodded.

"Yes, but that's it. That image of myself that's in _PEOPLE,_ it's not who I am."

She cocked her head.

"Then who are you?"

"I'm a simple guy who loves to spend the day out on the ranch on a good horse. I love good barbecue and a cold beer at the end of a hard day and I love my career, as an investigator more than I ever enjoyed being an international businessman or jet setter."

"Surely, the glamour…"

He interrupted.

"No, I don't really enjoy that part of it as much as people might think. I became an investigator because I wanted to help people who didn't have anyone else to turn to when they're in trouble."

"And all those women…"

He shook his head.

"One woman."

"The article stated…"

"I'm not the playboy the magazine makes me out to be. I've had relationships like most people," he said, "I've also had my heart broken like anyone else."

* * *

"We're out of Pistachio ice cream," Butterfly said, plopping on the couch, "So I brought you butter pecan."

C.J. took the bowl.

"Thanks," she said, "This will hit the spot."

Butterfly looked at the computer screen.

"What are you working on?"

"I'm finishing up a brief," she said.

"Where's Matt?"

"He's probably still in town following up a lead."

C.J. had driven back to the ranch, later that night. It felt like being part of a caravan with all the vehicles trailing her down the highway to make sure she made it back safely. She hadn't seen Matt since their argument earlier that afternoon and thought he was probably still working. Of course he could also be hanging out with Sydney somewhere. She told herself she didn't care. Why should she? He was a grown man who enjoyed the attentions of attractive women.

"What was it like being in jail?"

C.J. shrugged.

"It's my second time," she said, "Of course, I had amnesia the first from a car accident and I got arrested on some trumped up charge with Rhonda and we wound up in jail."

Butterfly frowned.

"Where they wanted you to do bad things."

C.J. nodded.

"I didn't remember much of who I was when I was there," she said, "But I remember thinking that every man around me was dangerous. Of course, that's not true. I just didn't have any good memories of men at the time to draw on."

"Matt came to break you out, didn't he?"

C.J. laughed.

"He stole some clothes from a deputy and disguised himself to slip into the ranch where we were taken and he took them down."

"Jail's not a very nice place."

"It's not supposed to be," C.J. said, "But the cell today wasn't too bad. The bunks were a bit lumpy and that reporter complained the whole time."

"I think they were wrong to arrest you."

"Yes they were, but we're out now and that's what matters."

* * *

Matt came into the cabin, and reached for the light switch. He saw ice cream bowls on the table and that C.J. had fallen asleep on the couch, in the midst of her work. He gently tugged several documents from her grasp and placed them on the table. he then placed his stack of copied records next to them. C.J. snuggled into her cushion, her hair fanned out across it. He looked at her for a while then went to bed.

The next morning, C.J. left early to go out with Jed to help him repair some fencing. She had some free time before she had to return to polishing her legal briefs and she enjoyed splitting rail, a task which didn't allow her mind to wander much. She didn't see Matt before she left to go to the barn to tack up Sienna and head on out to meet Jed and Reed.

"How you feeling this morning jailbird," Jed said, good naturally as she rode up towards him.

She smiled.

"From one to another, I feel great. How about you?"

* * *

Matt walked into the kitchen of the ranch house where Thea sat at the table reading a newspaper.

"Want some leftover eggs," she said.

He spooned some on a plate and poured some coffee and sat next to her.

"C.J. and Jed are out repairing fence," she said, "They're trying to get to it before Frisco finds it."

"I didn't see her this morning," he said.

"You're welcome to ride out and help them," she said.

He grimaced, as he took a bite of his eggs.

"I don't think she'd be happy to see me right now."

Thea looked up at Matt.

"She told me what happened the night of the party."

He glanced up at her, surprised.

"Oh that."

"No, she told me what really happened," Thea said, "I told her to talk to you about it."

"What do you mean," he said.

"You'll have to talk to her about that," Thea said.

His expression grew thoughtful.

He nodded.

"Okay, I will."

Not that he knew how to reopen that conversation. But then again, he did some of his best thinking on the back of a good horse.

* * *

Matt rode up to where the others were working on repairing some fence and joined in. C.J. looked up at him but didn't say anything, choosing instead to focus on repairing the wiring. They worked for several hours as the sun rose higher in the sky, and a soft wind started to blow the grass in the meadow.

"Nice day, for a picnic," Jed said, laughing, "Too bad we didn't bring lunch."

"I guess we'll have to ride back to your house and see if there's any leftovers," Reed said, taking his gloves off.

Jed nodded.

"Sure, Bonnie's got some stew left from dinner," Jed said.

Reed smiled. He loved Bonnie's cooking especially if the stew came with some of her specialty pies.

C.J. started to follow them, but Matt walked up to her.

"Wait, I want to apologize for that argument we had yesterday."

She looked at him.

"Me too," she said, "I was out of line."

"No, I've been coming on a bit strong with the over protectiveness again."

She smiled.

"It's not like there's ever been a dull moment on this case."

"I think you're doing very well with it in very difficult circumstances," he said.

"I'm still standing anyway."

"Yes you are," Matt said, "It's really nice out here today."

She nodded.

"Come on, let's go sit down underneath my favorite tree."

And so they did, with both trying to figure out how to take what they wanted to say and put it into words.

* * *

They sat back on the grass under the trees muscles aching after some hours of fence mending. C.J. pulled the splinters out of her fingers that had gotten past her gloves. She sat up and stuck one of her fingers in her mouth.

"Does it hurt," Matt asked.

"A little," she said, "Not much."

He took her hand in his own and gently tried to work on the splinter. She looked away as she usually did when anyone looked at her hands closely. He removed the splinter and then rubbed her palm extending into her fingers.

"I'm a magnet for splinters," she said, laughing softly.

"Ever since you tried to climb the side of a barn and slid back down it the wrong way."

She winced.

"I'd rather forget about that."

He paused, still holding onto her hand.

"I have something to ask you," he said.

C.J. nodded, her face relaxing as he rubbed her palm.

"Go ahead, ask."

"That night after my party…"

She frowned and the light fell from her eyes.

"Oh that," she said.

"Yeah that," he said, "I think what happened that night is standing between us, festering like a splinter beneath the skin."

She sighed and turned her head so he saw her profile.

"I don't think that's the metaphor I'd use."

"It's the closest comparison I could think of on the spot."

Her shoulders slumped and her hand slipped out of his.

"I said I was sorry," she said, "What more do you want?"

"I want the truth," he said quietly.

She took a careful breath and exhaled slowly.

"Look, I told you that I'm sorry for what I did. I was wrong to try to use you like that."

She looked ashamed and that wasn't what he wanted.

"C.J., I'm not sure that's what you did."

She turned to look at him.

"I told you…"

"I know what you told me," he said, "That you wanted me because you wanted to erase those bad memories of what Andre had done."

Her face flushed.

"And you told me you wouldn't go further," she said, "And I respected your wishes and apologized for asking for something I had no business…"

He smiled to soften his words.

"You did more than ask."

She sighed.

"I know and I'm sorry."

"Don't be. It was very…tempting."

"It didn't mean anything."

"I don't buy that," he said.

"Like I said, I was using you and I'm sorry." she said, "Can't we leave it at that?"

"No we can't," Matt said, "I think I said something that really hurt you and I want to find out why."

"It doesn't matter what or why," she said, closing her eyes, "I told you, I was using you to forget what Andre did."

"I'm not sure I believe that," Matt said.

She sighed.

"Look, the night of the accident, I was in the same situation with Jason. He came on to me, wanted me to spend some time with him in Denver...alone and I was very tempted."

Matt pondered that news.

"But he's in the hospital now so you never had the chance to find out."

She shook her head.

"I turned him down."

Matt blinked his eyes.

"So you had an opportunity to do that with Jason and you turned him down," he said, "Why?"

She looked at her hands for a while. Matt waited as her face grew more flustered.

"If what you wanted was to erase the past, Jason could have done that," he said.

She looked at him briefly, her eyes glistening.

"Because I didn't want him," she said, "I wanted you."

She closed herself off pulling away from him.

"I can't talk about this," she said.

"Why?"

She looked up with him, tears threatening.

"Because I don't know why I did it."

He sat up, his back resting against the tree next to her. She still huddled within herself but the words erupted from where they had hidden for a while.

"I just remember watching that guy aim his gun at you and thinking that in a split second, he would kill you and there's nothing I could do to stop it. I felt so helpless in my life thinking you were going to die, then I would die inside with you. "

"Like you felt when you couldn't stop Andre," he said.

She nodded slowly.

"And when his gun locked and you were still there, I don't know it's like I got it all back in a rush. I thought I'd lost you."

"My life definitely flashed before my eyes at that moment. I really believed that was it and I didn't want it to be," Matt said.

She continued, struggling with her feelings.

"So when we got back to the house and we were alone, all I could think of was touching you and holding you to make sure you really were okay and I went further than I should have but I couldn't stop myself from wanting you. I never felt quite like that before with you and I never thought I'd feel that way with anyone ever again."

"It's a natural response to a life and death situation," he said, "You're not the only one to feel that way and act on it."

She ran her hands through her hair and pulled it behind her head.

"But it's different with you," she said, "I don't know how I feel. I just know I wanted you more at that moment than I was afraid of being with you."

"But I think I made you feel afraid," he said, "When I responded."

She put her head in her hand and nodded, afraid her words would hurt him. Still, she had to tell him the truth so he could see it was her fault.

"I loved how you touched me. I didn't want you to stop," she said, "It's just that, there's something wrong with me inside. I'm broken in a way that I don't know if it can ever be fixed."

He watched her fight to maintain control to keep her voice from breaking.

"And you were right."

She put her hands over her face, hiding her tears.

His eyes narrowed as her words hit him.

"Right about what?"

"To tell me you couldn't make love," she said, "That it would be for the wrong reasons."

"I think I could have said it better than I did."

She shook her head.

"You were honest," she said, "What's wrong with that?"

He paused for a while.

"Except that I wasn't."

She cocked her head, looking at him. She hadn't expected those words.

"What do you mean?"

"C.J., part of me wanted to erase those memories for you and I wanted to give you back what he took away," he said, "But that's not why I responded and that's not why I pulled back."

"Then why did you," she said.

"If I had done that for that reason, those memories wouldn't be erased," he said, "I know that, so that can't be the reason."

She smiled ruefully.

"I think I figured that out on my own, that doing that isn't enough."

"But there's more," he said.

She looked at him warily.

"Because a larger part of me wants that kind of relationship with you," he said.

"What…"

"I have wanted that for a while but life kind of got in the way."

"What do you mean," she said.

"When I got back from my six months away, I was going to tell you that but I came back to a world much different than the one I left."

"Well, things works out different than the way we want or plan," she said.

"Yes they do," Matt said, "But my feelings haven't changed."

"I've changed," she said, "I'm not that woman you wanted anymore."

"Maybe not," he said, "But you're very special and I don't want to be with anyone else."

Now the tears flowed and she wiped them.

"I'm not sure what I can give you," she said, "You matter to me more than anyone but I'll just end up shortchanging you. I think I proved that the night of the party. What I did wrong was not being honest about that."

"You got scared because you're still healing yourself and it's going to take time," he said, "But I doubt that you'd ever shortchange anyone."

"I don't think time's going to change that."

"I know that it will," he said, "You're not broken and you don't need to be fixed and I'm really sorry if I did or said anything that made you think that I believed otherwise."

"No, it was me," she said. "I think part of me was trying to prove I wasn't and I failed."

He leaned closer to her.

"No you didn't," he said, "and given time and if you'll trust me on this, I think I can prove how wrong you are."

She looked at him sideways.

"You think so."

He took her hand again and kissed it.

"I know so."


	19. Chapter 19

Chapter 19--- I hope you like this latest installment. Thanks for the feedback!

* * *

C.J. looked into the eyes of her best friend and slowly nodded.

"I'll think about it," she said, "That's all I can promise."

He smiled.

"That's fair enough."

She picked the grass with her fingers, looking down at it.

"You're my best friend in the world and I don't want to ever lose that."

"That's not going to happen," he said, "That's never going to happen."

She still looked troubled.

"That's what you say, but you don't know."

"No one knows what the future holds," Matt said, "But I'm feeling optimistic."

Her cheeks felt warm and she looked around at the empty meadow.

"I think we missed lunch," she said.

"I think I can scrounge something," he said, "I'll be back."

He stood up and walked to where his horse stood grazing. He dug into the saddlebag and pulled out some sandwiches. He tossed one back to her and she caught it. He plucked out two colas and walked back to sit down next to her.

She opened up her sandwich.

"Mmm, turkey right?"

"Thea made a couple of her specialties in exchange for me having this discussion with you."

C.J. looked up.

"You talked to Thea about what happened?"

Matt noticed she didn't seem all that upset.

"Well, a little bit this morning," he said, "But Thea's one of the most perceptive people I've ever met. You can't get anything past her."

C.J. laughed.

"I know," she said, "She got the truth out of me last night despite myself."

He slowly unwrapped his sandwich and grew thoughtful.

"Whatever you decide, I'm glad that we cleared the air between us."

She nodded.

"Me too."

Matt looked up and saw Jed and Reed riding back towards them.

"Lunch break must be over," he said.

"It looks like it."

Matt stood up and took her hand, helping her on her feet. She brushed off her jeans. Jed and Reed pulled their horses to a stop in front of them. C.J. knew that meant more trouble.

"They're back on the Hyatt ranch," Jed said.

* * *

Matt and C.J. looked at each other and got back on their horses. They all rode off at a gallop towards the abandoned ranch.

Two men stood there next to their horses. When C.J. reined in Sienna, one of them snickered.

"Oh look, it's Annie Oakley."

Jed and Matt got off of their horses, joining C.J.

"There are three of us that will be chasing you off today," Matt said.

"This gets so old," C.J. said, "You know you're not supposed to be here."

The man folded his arms.

"That piece of paper doesn't mean anything here."

"Get off the land," Jed said, "You're in violation of the temporary injunction."

"The sheriff should have kept you in jail," the man said, "That would have taught you a lesson."

"That was the plan wasn't it," Matt said, "To lock them up and then have them suffer an 'accident' while in custody."

"That's not what I meant," the man said.

"I'll bet," Matt said, "But you failed. Your boss must be unhappy with you about now."

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"How long have you been working for Kilroy," Jed said, "Because you don't look like you're from these parts."

"Who says I work for him?"

Who else would be paying you to trespass on this land?"

The man smirked.

"You'd be surprised," he said and got on his horse, "Kilroy's got competition even in his own backyard. And there's good reason for that."

"Why do they really want this land," Matt asked.

C.J. looked at Matt puzzled.

"This can't be all about building a ski resort, Matt said.

"You'll never find out in time."

The man gestured to the other two men and they all rode off.

C.J. crossed her arms and looked at Matt.

"What was that all about," she said.

Matt sighed.

"I was going to tell you last night," he said, "But you were asleep."

"Okay, so tell me now."

"Did you know that Kilroy and his partners have picked up other properties around here?"

C.J. nodded.

"I think that's what those records were telling us."

"Yeah, well none of those proposed projects was ever built, except one that didn't stay in business that long."

"Are you sure?"

"I left copies of records involving 10 such properties by your computer."

C.J. rubbed her forehead.

"I didn't get a chance to see them," she said, "I'm heading back that way so I'll take a look at them when I get back to the cabin."

"I'll see you later," he said.

She smiled softly.

"I'll look forward to it."

* * *

C.J. found the documents that Matt had brought back sitting by her computer and she flipped through them. She discovered that he had been right, in that none of the projects had come to fruition. Not sure what that meant, she pulled up her legal briefs on her computer and begin working on the documents. Only several days remained until she had to send them to Denver for the other attorneys to review before submitting to the presiding judge in their federal case.

She thought about her conversation with Matt and what he had asked of her. She wished she could have given him the answer that he wanted but the attorney in her, needed to draw up a list inside her head to balance out the pros and cons of taking their relationship to a new level. She knew it would break her heart if things didn't work out and they parted in any other way but as best friends who had invested nearly their entire lives into that relationship. On the other hand, she knew that he really believed in what he had told her or he wouldn't have said it which meant he believed in them. She wished that she could be as sure as he had been, hating that Andre had turned her into a woman she sometimes no longer recognized. But that Matt somehow did. He saw past the cautious person she had become, guarding her feelings and herself at all costs to someone else she still remembered sometimes. Was he right or wrong, the answer scared her even as it brought a slow smile to her face.

The door opened and Butterfly bounced in the cabin carrying a package.

"How'd it go?"

Butterfly grinned.

"We caught quite a bit," she said, "Enough fish for dinner tonight. I'll put them away for now."

She went into the kitchen for a while. C.J. watched her go, bemused. She remembered the days when Butterfly would have protested if someone had asked her to touch a fish. The girl was coming along just fine.

Butterfly then returned to the living room, took off her iPod and sat next to C.J.

"Are you almost done," she asked.

"Getting there," C.J. said.

"Are you busy tonight," Butterfly said.

"Why?"

"Reed was supposed to go with Carter and me to the movies tonight but he had to bail."

C.J. made some corrections on her screen.

"Can we still go?"

C.J. looked up at the young girl, who waited eagerly for her answer

"You know that you need someone go with you," she said.

Butterfly frowned.

"I'm not a baby," she said, "Why does everyone treat me like one?"

"That's not it," C.J. said, "You know that all of us are being very careful about traveling alone especially at night."

"No one cares about me."

"Butterfly, they could easily strike out at you or Carter to get back at one of us," she said, "We don't want anything to happen to either one of you."

She nodded.

"Okay. So, all I do is have to find some other adult to go?"

"I'll be willing to go with you," C.J. said, "I'll be more than ready to get away from this computer by tonight if not throw it out of the cabin."

Butterfly pondered her offer.

"Okay, but you have to sit a couple of rows away," she said.

C.J. smiled.

"You won't know I'm even there," she said.

Butterfly moved to put her iPod back on and then an idea struck her.

"Why don't you bring Matt along?"

C.J. laughed.

"What kind of movie is it?"

"It's about vampires and the undead," Butterfly said.

"Vampires? Zombies," C.J. said, shaking her head, "They sure have interesting tastes for movies in this town."

"I know," Butterfly said, "Awesome isn't it?"

"Maybe if the vampires rode horses," C.J. mused, "But I'll ask him."

Butterfly jumped off the couch and ran into the kitchen, probably to get one of those colas that was no doubt feeding her exuberance.

C.J.'s phone rang. She smiled when she saw the Caller I.D.

"Hi, Chris, what's up?"

"My breakfast and lunch," Chris said, "It's beginning to get old."

"You'll be past this trimester soon and then you'll forget all about it."

"God, I hope so," she said.

"Butterfly's here if you want to speak to her," C.J. said, "She's going to the movies tonight with Carter."

"The latest older guy in her life?"

"He's really nice, very mature and seems to be a little taken aback by Butterfly's …enthusiasm but he rides a horse not a motorcycle."

"That's some relief," Chris said, "How are you doing?"

C.J. paused.

"Things are getting very interesting here for sure."

"Butterfly sent me an email that you decked some guy at a diner."

"Yes, it's been a little bit rough here," C.J. said, "Jed and I got arrested with some reporter yesterday."

"Arrested? For what?"

"Officially, blocking the steps at City Hall but I think they were planning on something else."

Chris hesitated.

"Are you safe there?"

"We're fine," C.J. said, "We're looking out for one another."

"How's Matt doing?"

"He's doing…well. There's a reporter with a string of local broken hearts behind her who's been pursuing him about doing a feature story because of the_ PEOPLE_ article. I'm thinking she's ambitious to go national so she can start breaking hearts there."

Chris laughed.

"So she's got poor Matt in her sights?"

"I guess so," C.J. said, "She followed him around town yesterday and he must have gotten back really late last night."

"Talk about lost causes," she said, "We know how much Matt loves being the center of media attention which isn't much."

"True."

"Besides…"

Butterfly returned to the room and jumped on the couch with a cola in hand.

"Who's that?"

"It's Chris," C.J. said, "Chris, Butterfly's here and excited to talk to you."

C.J. handed her the phone and returned to her lap top.

* * *

Matt and Jed rode back to the ranch.

"So do you think those guys will keep coming back," Jed said.

They stopped in front of the barn.

"I don't know," Matt said, "I'm still trying to figure out what he meant by competition within Kilroy's circle."

"Do you think one of his own guys is getting ready to make a move?"

They led their horses back into the barn.

"If so, I hope it's not that Nick guy."

"Definitely a loose cannon," Jed said, in agreement.

"I'm also wondering what they're doing with the land," Matt said, "Since it's clear they're not building on it."

"That's strange," Jed said, "The parcels have been sitting idle, in some cases for longer than a year."

"Land is cheap right now," Matt said, "So if you sold it within a year or so, the assessment value's not going to be much higher, so they can't be middlemen."

Jed shook his head.

"It's going to be interesting to find out what's going on and whether this ski resort has been a shell game all along."

"Or a Trojan horse."

* * *

Later, C.J. set some plates out for dinner. Matt had arrived just as she and Butterfly had finished frying the trout that Butterfly and Carter had caught earlier that day at the lake.

"Who caught them," Matt asked.

"Butterfly and Carter," she said, "They look really nice."

"I might try some of that fishing," Matt said, "I heard it's very relaxing."

She laughed.

"Until someone pulls you into the lake after him."

He put his hands up.

"That was an accident," he said, "Besides my technique has greatly improved since then."

She rolled her eyes at him.

"I bet it has."

"So I heard Butterfly's going to the movies with Carter tonight and needs chaperons."

She took a spatula and scooped the fish out of the pan. He went to the refrigerator to pull out some drinks.

"I agreed to go," she said, "It'll be great to get out for a few hours, watch some vampires and…the undead over some popcorn. Just forget about this case for a while."

"Would you like some company?"

She looked up at him and shrugged.

"If you'd like to come, you're welcome."

He brushed his fingers against her face.

"Then it's a date," he said, taking some of the plates to the table.

She watched him go, shaking her head.

* * *

"So how do you tell the vampires apart from the undead?"

C.J. studied the screen.

"You know, I'm not sure," she said, "They all look the same to me."

They sat in the last row of the theater watching the screen while keeping an eye towards where Carter and Butterfly sat a few rows below them. A bucket of popcorn between them.

"I think that's the vampire killer," she said, "He's the only one without pale makeup and a lot of hair spray."

Matt nodded.

"I see what you mean," he said, "I'm just waiting for the horses to show up."

C.J. suppressed her laughter.

"Sorry none in this motion picture," she said, eating some popcorn.

Matt looked around the theater.

"Not many people here tonight," he said, "This movie will probably close the same week it opened."

She leaned closer to him.

"I think it's kind of nice."

He looked down as her head rested against his shoulder.

"Very nice," he agreed.

C.J. looked down where Carter and Butterfly sat.

"They seem more into the movie than each other," C.J. said.

Matt frowned.

"Teenagers just don't go to the movies for the same reasons anymore."

She looked at him.

"You think they should be doing something besides watching the movie?"

"Oh come on, we never went to these movies because they were any good."

She nodded.

"You're right," she said, "It's just that Chris will kill me if anything happens. She shipped Butterfly here to get her away from boys for a while."

He smiled, putting his arm around her. She responded by moving closer.

"It's pretty much impossible to do that anywhere," Matt said.

"She just thinks Butterfly is growing up too fast."

"Butterfly's got a good head on her shoulders," Matt said, "Besides was it any different between you and that fellow you went out with named…Brock?"

"Brick."

"Same difference."

She lifted her head up to look at him.

"What does Brick have to do with this?"

"You told him to take a hike eventually, didn't you? "

"Well, yeah...but."

"So you had good judgment," Matt said, "I think Butterfly would have done the same with that Spike character."

"Maybe, but I can see where it's hard to be on the parenting side," C.J. said, "And I would bet if Butterfly were your daughter, you'd be after the guy with a shotgun if he made any moves on her."

He knew she hit the mark on that one.

"Maybe I'd start out with a pitchfork."

She smiled.

"I think Carter's a pretty solid young man raised in a good family," Matt said, "So I think Butterfly's in good hands."

"Good hands?"

"You know what I mean," he said, pulling out his phone.

He looked at it.

"Damn Brody keeps calling me," he said, "Maybe I'd better return it to get him to lay off the cell for a while."

She nodded.

"I'll hold your place," she said, handing him the empty popcorn container, "Bring back a refill."

* * *

He left the theater and walked into the lobby, calling on his cell phone.

"Brady, what the hell is it?"

"Oh hi, Matt…You returned my call."

Matt started pacing in the lobby.

"Only because you kept calling," he said, "I'm at the movies with C.J. chaperoning Butterfly and her date."

"So who's chaperoning you two?"

"Look, is it anything important?"

"Okay…I didn't know I caught you in the middle of an exciting movie, and you do know it's bad manners to interrupt your date by taking a phone call."

Matt held his tongue, mostly.

"What's so pressing?"

"I did some checking on your friend Kilroy and his equally nice partners and they've been busy buying up properties all over the region, during the past year or so."

"I figured that out today," Matt said, "Anything else?"

"They did the same thing back east and then it appears they sold those properties."

"Why?"

"That's where the paper trail ended," Brody said, "Though I'm still looking. I have some time now that the backlog's clearing up real nicely."

"Good job on that," Matt said.

"Hope that's included in the annual bonus," Brody said, "Talk to you later."

Matt hung up the phone, refilled the popcorn at the counter and went back into the theater.

* * *

"It doesn't look like much has happened," he said, sitting down next to C.J.

"Actually, the undead showed up at the prom party and decided to dine on the king and queen."

"Oh," Matt said, "That was Brody, he traced some of the past purchases by Kilroy and company back East."

"And…"

"They sold the land within one year of buying it."

"Oh my God," C.J. said, "But why, with land values tanking as they've been the past year."

"I know," Matt said, "But even in recessions, there are intrinsic factors which would increase land values aren't there?"

She nodded.

"Lots of things," she said, "You could get Brody to check to see if any appraisals were done on the land especially geological surveys or resource appraisals."

He nodded.

"We could check locally, especially on the older purchases."

"I'll do that tomorrow," she said.

He reached for her hand.

"Let's worry about tomorrow, tomorrow okay," he said, "And tonight, we'll sit back and enjoy this very…interesting film before it goes straight to DVD."

She felt him rubbing her palm with his thumb and she turned her face towards him.

"Do they bother you?"

He looked over and saw some wariness back in her eyes.

"Does what bother me?"

"My hands," she said, "They…"

"They're fine. They certainly feel fine," he said, "Do they bother you?"

"Sometimes, when they remind me…" she said, "But I've grown used to them."

He lifted her hand and looked at her palm, while stroking it.

"They remind me that you got away, that you came back to the people who love you," Matt said, "That's what I remember when I see them."

She looked at him, her eyes suddenly stinging a bit.

"Thank you," she said.

"And when they're touching me, I'm certainly not going to complain about them."

She laughed.

"You seem sure of yourself."

"Always, about things that matter."

She took some popcorn, thinking about that.

"Well, since we're comparing scars," he said, "What about the one on my hand?"

She looked at a line near one of his knuckles.

"You cut yourself slicing avocados," she said, "while you had your eye on the Super Bowl at one of your parties."

"It was a critical play," he said.

"Yeah that's what you said all the way to the emergency room," she said, "I think one nurse argued with you about that play while stitching you up."

"It was really important," he said, "And I could have completed that pass in my sleep."

"Sure, okay. I believe you."  
Then she looked at him, picked up his hand and kissed that scar gently.

"Better?"

He nodded.

* * *

After the movie, they walked out to the parking lot to the rover. C.J. saw the envelope on the windshield, tucked beneath the wiper blade.

"What's this," she said plucking it out and ripping it open.

"Another note from your mysterious source?"

"To meet him or her in the park in…"

She looked at her watch.

"About fifteen minutes."

"What's up," Butterfly asked.

"How would you two like to go to the diner and order some dessert?"

Butterfly and Carter looked at each other.

"Where will you be," she asked.

"We've got to meet someone," C.J. said, "We'll meet you there when we get finished."

"You're trusting us to be alone together," Butterfly said.

"Sure," C.J. said with a smile, "Besides Ethel will keep an eye on you and report back."

Butterfly frowned.

"Just kidding."

Butterfly grinned and took off with Carter to the diner. Matt and C.J. got into the rover and drove off to the park, stopping the car underneath the cover of trees in the lot. They sat there while she prepared to leave the car.

"C.J…"

"I've got to go alone," she said.

He nodded.

She got out of the car and headed towards the picnic table near where she had met the mysterious source earlier. She sat at the table, occasionally looking back at the rover. Suddenly, she saw the figure once again move to the light. She left the table, walking to the light.

"I see you have been doing your research," the figure said.

"Who are you," C.J. asked.

"Never mind," the figure said, handing her another envelope.

"What's this," she said, taking the envelope and tucking it in her jacket, "Does it have to do with Kilroy selling those properties back East?"

The figure stood still.

"What made that land go up in value so much in less than a year?"

"This document will answer some of your questions," the figure said, "Now I must go…"

The figure started to leave.

Matt watched and then saw some shadows lurking in a bush near where C.J. and the figure stood. He got out of the rover to investigate, resting his hand where he kept his gun. C.J. didn't see the three men who crept out from behind the bush. Matt ran faster so he could reach them first. The figure looked up, saw them and took off running.

C.J. looked behind her and saw that they had cut off her path back to the rover.

"What are you doing out here meeting someone this time of night," one of them asked.

"Nothing," she said, putting her hands in her pockets.

They moved in closer.

"Nick didn't like what you did to him," one of them said.

Her mouth remained in a fine line.

"Good."

"You being smart, bitch?"

"Hey, watch it with the names," she said.

She looked around for an escape route but couldn't find one. Her mind began working fast and her hand moved to her gun.

"If you're reaching for your gun, you can't shoot all three of us."

"I don't know, I think between the two of us, we can."

The three men looked up and saw Matt walking towards them, his gun out.

"Walk away," he ordered the men. "Or you can always crawl away."

"They're Nick's guys," C.J. said.

"Okay, Nick's guys, you have ten seconds to get out of here."

"Or what," one of them said.

Matt sighed.

"You guys never learn do you?"

C.J. saw movement out of the corner of her eye.

"Watch out!"

Matt turned around just as one of the men rushed him and slammed him in the jaw, nearly knocking him off his feet. C.J. came from behind and shoved that man on the ground where Matt pinned him down after struggling with him over his gun. When another man tried to grab her from behind, she spun around and grabbed him, kneeing him. He fell on the ground and didn't get up again. The other man realized he was suddenly outnumbered and took off.

"All right, which one of you would like to answer questions first," Matt said, after he got back on his feet, dusted himself off and aimed his gun at both of them.

They just looked at him.

"Don't all talk at once."

The two men both the worse for wear looked at each other but remained silent.

"Okay, we can do this the harder way," Matt said, grabbing one of them off the ground and pushing him against the light post. He put the gun against the guy's head.

"You think I won't pull this trigger," Matt said, "Well, you might be right about that but then again, after all the trouble you've caused and the people you've nearly killed including this lady here, you can't be sure of that. If you're gambling on my reverence for life over my desire for payback, you might be wrong."

The man glared at him.

"I don't know what you're talking about."

Matt nudged the other man with his foot.

"What about you," he said, "Do you have anything to say?"

"I don't work for anyone."

Matt looked at the man he had hold of again.

"We can try this again," he said, "Why did your boss, Nick, hire you to get rid of this lady here and the lawyers who are now in a hospital?"

"You think you're so smart," the man said, "You come up with the answer."

Matt pushed the tip of the gun closer to his face.

"One of us has to be smart because it's clearly not you," he said, "How 'bout your friend there?"

The man on the ground sighed.

"Okay, he's got us working for him to stop the permanent injunction."

"That's pretty obvious," C.J. said.

"He…."

Suddenly, the piercing noise of sirens approached the park. Matt and C.J. looked up and saw two sheriff cars heading towards them. After they parked, the deputies got out of the car and ran up to them, guns drawn.

"All right, put your hands up," one deputy said, "You sir, drop the gun."

Matt did and wondered not for the first time since he had gotten there, what the hell was going on.


	20. Chapter 20

Chapter 20

------Internet troubles, computer troubles, got this installment up. Hope you like it, hope it makes sense and thanks for the input!

* * *

After Matt dropped his gun and put his hands up, he watched the deputies approach them. The other men still lay on the ground and they stared at the deputies as well.

"What's going on here," one of the deputies asked.

"They tried to attack me," C.J. said, "It's too bad that men feel they can prey on women."

"She's lying," one of the men on the ground said.

"Ms Parsons…"

"You know who I am," she said.

One deputy nodded.

"Yes we do," he said, "You were arrested just yesterday. You're on the 'watch' list."

"There were no charges filed," she said, "I haven't done anything wrong to warrant being on any list."

"Maam , that's up for the sheriff to decide," he said.

"That's the problem," C.J. grumbled.

The deputy turned to Matt.

"Why were you in the park?"

C.J. put her hands on her hips.

"He was with me of course," she said, "When are you going to ask these two men what they were doing here?"

"We'll get to them," the deputy said, "Now were you in the park together?"

"Yeah…we were just taking a walk," C.J. said, "We're on a date."

Matt looked over from the deputy towards C.J as she spun her account.

"See, we spent the night at the movies which let out not too long ago and we were just having a post-movie walk in the moonlight before heading back but then we're accosted by these men."

"They attacked us," one man said.

"We just defended ourselves," C.J. said, "We got the better of them quickly enough as you can see."

"Ms Parsons," one deputy said, "You are treading on very thin ice in this town."

"I think that's been the case since I got here," she said.

"Don't be smart with us," he said.

Matt looked at the deputy.

"Look, we told you our story," he said, "Are you going to let us go or are you taking us to jail?"

The deputy raised his hand.

"Right now, we're still trying to sort through everyone's stories."

"Because we'd really like to resume our stroll through the park if you don't mind. You know how it is when you're with an attractive woman."

The deputies looked at each other and one of them pulled his collar uncomfortably. C.J. looked at Matt who winked at her.

"We'll let you go back to whatever it was you were doing after we question everyone to sort this out."

The deputy turned to the men on the ground.

"Come on, get up," he said, "We're going to have to take you in for questioning."

C.J. looked at Matt. The deputy looked at both of them.

"You two are free to go," he said, "But keep out of trouble while you're in town or we will be taking you in."

They looked at the deputy and nodded as he and his partner led the two men towards their squad cars.

"He's not handcuffing them," C.J. said.

"That's because he's out here doing damage control," Matt said, "Right now they're going back to what passes for a station and getting reprimanded by Daniels before he cuts them loose."

She grimaced.

"You're probably right."

"Nice cover story, Parsons."

She shrugged.

"I hope I didn't come on too strong with the date part but..."

"You didn't want to compromise your source."

She nodded.

"Yeah, I don't want anyone else to get hurt."

He looked at her.

"Actually that was my favorite part of your story."

"It's kind of true," she said.

"Definitely."

He moved some hair off of her face with his fingers.

"Are you okay," he asked.

She looked up at him.

"Fine, thanks," she said, then looked at his jaw. "Oh my, what happened?"

"I got slammed by something," Matt said, "It doesn't hurt very much."'

C.J. touched it gently.

"I think it's getting swollen," she said, "I got to get you some ice at the diner."

"I'm fine," he said, "Some night out isn't it?"

She laughed.

"Just the usual drama since I've gotten here," she said, "Much better company to share it with."

He smiled.

"Things can only improve from here," he said.

"I don't know," she said, "I've really enjoyed tonight so far."

"So have I."

She took his hand and interlinked her fingers in his.

"That jaw needs attention."

"It's okay," he said, "What did the mysterious stranger give you this time?"

"Oh yeah, I almost forgot," she said, reaching into her jacket, "This envelope."

"What's inside?"

"We'll see at the diner…after you get some ice on that jaw."

* * *

They entered the diner and saw Carter and Butterfly sitting, eating banana splits. When Butterfly saw them, she jumped up to greet them.

"What happened to your face?"

"It looks worse than it feels," Matt said.

"Did you run into those creeps again," Butterfly asked.

Matt and C.J. looked at each other.

"He's fine," C.J. said, "The police took the men into custody this time."

"It looks awful," Butterfly said, after taking a closer look.

"We need to get him some ice," C.J. said, walking to the counter and talked to a young man who returned with some ice cubes wrapped in a towel. Matt placed it gingerly over his jaw.

C.J. sat at a table after ordering a milk shake and opened up the envelope. She spread out the papers that had been inside of it.

"Look," she said, "A list of surveys that were ordered of some of the properties."

Matt joined her and looked at the documents.

"Geological?"

She nodded.

"I wonder what they found," she said, "It must have been something involving those properties back East for their values to go up enough to be worth the effort to flip them."

"Maybe mineral deposits?"

"That's a possibility," she said, replacing the documents back in the envelope.

"I wonder what kind," he said, "It has to be something that they believe is worth hurting people over."

They looked up and saw Sydney entering the diner. She walked over to their table.

"I heard there was some commotion at the park," she said.

C.J. shrugged.

"Not much happened."

Sydney crossed her arms.

"That's not what the deputies said," she said, "They said there was an altercation."

"How long did it take for them to release those two men," C.J. said.

"They were released on their own recognizance a few minutes ago."

"Of course."

"What happened to him," Sydney said.

"He got knocked off his feet," C.J. said, "When he came to my rescue. What a brave man but as usual, very modest."

"Really," Sydney said, "I think this will be worth hearing."

"Yeah, that's right," C.J. said, "You're doing that profile on him, aren't you?"

"Maybe, but he actually has to stick around long enough to be interviewed."

C.J. looked at Matt still nursing his jaw.

"Have you been playing hard to get with the reporter?"

"I've been very busy," Matt said, putting the ice down, "You've kept me very busy."

"I'm sorry," C.J. said, "I had no idea. If you want to talk to her, don't let me stand in your way."

"So you're okay with this," Sydney said, "You know, my reputation in this town as a man killer is way overblown."

C.J. finished up her shake, spooning out the last bit of ice cream.

"Sure, just as long as I get him back when you're done with your interviewing because I really need his services…on this case."

Matt looked at her and then nodded.

"We've got a lot of work to do."

Sydney looked from one to the other.

"I can see that," she said, "I'll get back in touch with you later. Do you mind if I bring a photographer to do some shots for the article?"

"No, I don't mind," he said, looking at C.J. who suppressed her laughter.

Sydney got up and walked out. Matt gave C.J. a look after the reporter had left.

"C.J., what's so funny?"

She chuckled.

"You," she said, "Here you have this opportunity to be featured in the newspaper and you're acting like you're getting a root canal."

"You know how I feel about the media."

"Yeah I do," she said, "But this sounds like it should be fun."

"To be viewed as a sex object," Matt said, "How would you feel…"

"Houston, you're a very attractive man," C.J. said, "And many women do consider you sexy or so I've heard..and… read."

Matt held back a smile.

"What about you?"

She looked back at him.

"Me? What do I have to do with it?"

"Because you're the one who matters," he said.

He watched the blush creep up into her cheeks.

"Well…yeah…That's a loaded question."

He leaned forward.

"How so?"

Matt watched her face as she thought about it. He loved watching her mind work.

"Because answering it makes me feel both exhilarated and scared at the same time."

"Okay," he said, "But what's your answer?"

She paused.

"I think you're very sexy…and very sure of yourself."

He nodded, digesting that. She looked back at him, furrowing her brow.

"What do you think about me?"

He gave her a long look, his eyes inscrutable. He knew his answer mattered but he also knew it was simple.

"I'd rather show you," he said.

She slowly smiled despite herself. He loved the color in her cheeks.

"I don't think the world's ready for that."

"You'd be surprised what the world can take," he said, "But they sure don't come more incredibly...."

Butterfly walked up to them.

"Is he going to be okay?"

They both looked at her.

"Sure," C.J. said, "But we're going to head on back."

The four of them left the diner and walked to the car. While driving, C.J. looked back several times to make sure no vehicles followed them. Matt looked also but the road appeared deserted. Butterfly's focus remained on the movie.

"That was the coolest movie," Butterfly said.

"Who won," Matt asked, "The vampires or the undead?"

Butterfly looked surprised.

"You didn't know," she said, "It was pretty obvious that they formed an alliance against the werewolf pack."

Matt nodded.

"They were the ones with all that hair, right?"

"Well, yes," Butterfly said, "And they have incredible strength and speed."

"Lon Chaney, eat your heart out," C.J. said, "What did you think about it Carter?"

"Very good film, Maam," he said, "But my favorite movies are westerns."

C.J. looked at Matt.

"I guess someone shares your good taste in cinema. There's hope for the world yet."

* * *

Matt sat at the breakfast table eating his omelet slowly.

"Does it still hurt," C.J. asked as she sat down next to him.

"Not much," he said.

"It looks better than last night," she said.

"Speaking of which, I had a great time."

"Yeah, me too," she said.

"So do you want to try it again sometime?"

She nodded.

"Maybe," she said,"I'll let you pick the movie next time."

"The movie's not important," he said, "It's all in who you sit and enjoy it with."

"I'll keep that in mind," she said.

"What's up today?"

"To start with, I'm making the final additions to the documents so I'll be ready to send them off to Denver and then I'm going out riding."

"Want company?"

She smiled.

"Are you sure you can handle it." She said, "I might be going up in the mountains."

"You implying I can't keep up with you?"

"No, you ride…well, but this is rugged country."

He cocked his head.

"I'll bet you that I'll not only keep up, I'll set the pace."

She laughed.

"You're on."

* * *

They headed out across the meadows and up the windy mountain trail. Matt looked around at the forest which bordered each side of the rocky path.

"It looks so much different than the last time we rode together."

She nodded soberly. Back then, it had been winter and she and Matt were returning to the ranch with a badly injured Jed who had been shot by a hit man who had been after C.J.

"I think I like summer here a whole lot better than winter," C.J. said, "The trees are lovely and the flowers…"

"Smells really good," Matt said.

They rode up to the top of one of the smaller mountains and looked up over the valley below them that stretched all the way to the horizon.

"It's so beautiful," C.J. said. She dismounted and led Sienna to a tree to tie her up. She went to her saddlebag and pulled out some water. Matt followed her to where they sat on some rocks overseeing the view.

"I used to come up here all the time after Frisco when he escaped," she said, "Once, we just barely beat a snow storm back. The weather can turn on you quickly here."

"Would you ever like to live in a place like this one?"

C.J. grew thoughtful.

"Yeah, maybe," she said, "I do love it here. The people are so nice, Thea, Jed and Bonnie."

She looked up at him.

"They saved my life."

He took her hand in his and removed her glove. He began stroking her hand which she loved. She closed her eyes and enjoyed it.

"I'm really glad they did."

"Thea's been like a mother to me, I never really had one and never knew how much I needed one," she said, "And Jed, helped me a great deal on the ranch when everything was so confusing. And Bonnie…"

She grew silent.

"What," he asked.

She took a deep breath.

"I first met her when I went into her store the first time," she said, "I'd been up and around after being so sick for a couple of weeks. I drove to town to get some groceries and something else that I needed…"

"What was that," he said.

"A pregnancy test."

His eyes widened a bit. She watched his face and what she saw there allowed her to continue.

"I didn't want to tell anyone because I didn't want to answer any questions about why I needed one so I went to town and Bonnie, she helped me…I think she thought for a long time I had run away from an abusive husband or boyfriend and it was easier and safer to just let her believe that."

He nodded.

"Were you…"

She shook her head.

"Oh no," she said, "It was negative. I remember feeling so relieved about that. I guess I just needed to know."

He watched the expression on her face change.

"I don't know what I would have done if it hadn't been but I never had to find out."

"Did you ever tell anyone about this," Matt asked.

She looked pensive, then shook her head.

"No, I never did," she said, "I'm not sure why I just told you except I really want you to understand why I took this case, as crazy as it's turning out. It's just because the people involved mean an awful lot to me."

He slipped his arm around her shoulder and kissed the top of her head.

"I'm glad you told me," he said, "You shouldn't have to keep all that inside of you."

She shrugged.

"There's so much sometimes, and I just want to get on with my life. It's like being two different people."

"I think you're doing really well."

She stood up and brushed off her pants.

"That's all I can do and I love my new career, and living near my friends, pursue my dreams" she said, "I just miss seeing you."

"I'm here now."

She smiled as she walked back to Sienna and got back in the saddle.

"Let's go down to the lake," she said.

He nodded.

"Will we be going out in a boat?"

She looked at him, raising her brow.

"Yeah right."

They rode down the mountain trail towards the lake and when they hit the open mountain, C.J. galloped off with Matt in pursuit. Both doing what they loved best, riding fast horses across an endless meadow with the wind on their back and the sun overhead.

"So there's lot of fish in there," Matt asked as they walked alongside its banks.

"Trout galore," C.J. said, "Butterfly and Carter caught that dinner we ate and I did some fishing when I first got here. I just haven't had the time since."

"I can't think of anything more relaxing, which we both need to do because we've been so busy."

"Busy getting into trouble," she said, "And getting a little banged up in the process."

"In other words, life as usual."

She smiled, walking back to her horse.

"I've got some lunch supplies in the saddle bag," she said.

His eyebrows raised.

"So do I."

They each began pulling items out of their saddlebags and grinned as they saw that at least they had picked well. She brought sandwiches and potato salad. He brought wine. She was about to set the blanket out but then they both noticed the sky had darkened around them. A rumble of thunder sounded in the distance.

"Maybe we better move this picnic elsewhere," Matt said.

C.J. brightened.

"I know a place," she said, as they packed up their bags, got on their horses and rode off just as the sky began to open up and the rain came down.

* * *

They stood in the barn, where they had retreated to from the sudden downpour that was so common during late summer afternoons in Colorado. She smiled as he moved their picnic indoors up in the hayloft. He spread the blanket out and piled the food and the wine on top of it, setting a place for each of them while she watched.

"Are you ready to enjoy the spread," he asked when he had finished.

At first she wouldn't look at him, then she did and he was surprised and dismayed to see tears threaten in her eyes. He reached over to brush them off of her face, still mindful of the bruises which were still fading back into memory, leaving behind the face he knew so well. The one he wanted to touch, to remove any pain that he might have caused. And that was just for starters.

She caught his hand in her own and held it between her two palms.

"I have something I want to do first and if I don't do it now," she said, stubbing the loose straw with her shoe, "I might lose my nerve."

He looked at her, caught by the emotion in her admission and she reached out for him, placing her hands on his broad shoulders and moving over to kiss his lips. Once she started, she couldn't stop and she wrapped her arms around him and brought him in even closer. Then almost as suddenly, she released him and then quietly looked up at him, awaiting his response. He looked at her, different emotions stirring on his face, lighting up his brown eyes. She listened to the staccato beat of the rain on the roof above them and then made a decision.

"Okay, I'm ready to start eat…" she started to say lightly to ease her embarrassment over the moment and slip back into the comfortable nature of their friendship.

But before she could finish, he placed his hands on her shoulders and kissed her lips, tentatively at first and then more purposely. She responded in kind, marveling at both the hardness and softness of their kiss. He stroked her back with his hands, reaching up under her shirt for her bare skin. His lips moved from her own to caressing her neck down to her collarbone and she raised her head until she could see the rafters in the ceiling. Finally they separated, both breathing heavily and looking at each other, caught in each other's gaze.

She began unbuttoning her shirt while still looking into his eyes and he soon placed his hands on hers.

"Let me do that," he said gently.

He worked his way down her shirt, button by button exposing more of her bare skin and the hint of her lacy bra like a present he had waited years to open. He drew in his breath at the sight before him before he had finished unwrapping her. She bit her lip, wondering what he was thinking while trying to read his eyes. He then kissed her again before continuing with her shirt and placed his hands on her hips, drawing her in closer to him.

"I want to feel your skin," she said, reaching for his shirt.

He drew her own shirt back over her slender shoulders slowly and it fell onto the straw. Now she stood before her best friend, clad in her bra and jeans not really sure what to do next. He took off his own shirt and reached out for her, cupping her breasts in his hands and then reaching to unclasp the front of her bra…

"Hey, this is such a cool barn," a familiar voice drifted up from downstairs and both of them froze in response. Her face, flushed from desire now held a tinge of embarrassment as she placed her hands over her bra. They both turned and looked down at the floor below them, taking care to remain hidden themselves.

"It sure beats being in the rain outside," another familiar voice said.

Butterfly and Carter.

C.J reached down to pick up her shirt which she put on. She picked up Matt's shirt and tossed it to him. Her fingers moved quickly as she tried to button her shirt but she mismatched the buttons. Damn, she thought, looking down at her shirt. Matt slipped his own shirt over his head.

"It sure rains a lot here," Butterfly said.

"We have a lot of thunderstorms in the summer," Carter said, "They never last long."

"It's kind of nice being in here out of the rain with you," Butterfly said.

C.J. and Matt watched as Butterfly moved closer to Carter who seemed unaware of it.

"You're not bad company yourself," Carter said.

Butterfly hesitated.

"Carter, do you think I'm pretty?"

He looked at her.

"Yeah…You're very pretty."

"Pretty enough to be your girlfriend," she asked.

"Butterfly…we don't know each other that well."

C.J. looked like she was about to jump off the loft and confront the pair. Matt put his hand on her shoulder.

"Hmmm…" Butterfly said, sidling up to Carter.

C.J. looked at Matt.

"I can't believe this," she said.

He smiled.

"They're teenagers," he said, "It goes with the territory."

"Chris is going to kill me," C.J. said, "She shipped her to the ranch to get her away from Spike and now she's about to lip lock with another older guy."

"How do you know?"

C.J. looked sheepish.

"I've used the lines myself."

"Look, Carter's not Spike," Matt said, "For one thing, it sounds like he has better taste in clothes and no piercings."

C.J. cocked her head.

"I don't think I could ever be a mother and have to deal with puberty again."

Matt smiled and stroked her back.

"Why do you say that," he said, "Worrying about your kids' welfare also goes with the territory."

"You're right," she said, then turned around just as Butterfly planted a nice one on Carter's lips.

To Carter's credit, he looked like he had been caught by surprise, but not for long. He put his hands on Butterfly's shoulders and kissed back.

"Oh," C.J. said, sinking down on the straw.

"They're leaving," Matt said, "Maybe it stopped raining."

"How are we going to handle this," she said, still sitting.

He joined her and they rested their backs against the rail.

"Well, we could tell her that we saw them kiss," Matt said, "But then it might be tricky to explain why we didn't confront them on the account that we were making out up in the loft and not fully dressed."

"So we can't say anything," C.J. said.

"Maybe we should wait to see if she approaches one of us," Matt said.

C.J. nodded.

"You're right."

He put his arm around her shoulders. She looked at him, sideways.

"I don't know what got into me," she said, "I guess I just got caught in the moment."

"Whatever it was, I'm not complaining."

"I know what I said about not wanting to to replace some bad memories with some good ones," she said, "This wasn't what this was about."

He stroked the hair off of her face and tilted it towards him.

"I know that," he said, "That's why I kissed you back."

She sighed, but smiled at him. He like the way her eyes lit up when she did.

"I guess I'm not as nervous as I thought as long as I take it slowly."

"We will," he said, "I'll never push you to do more than you want to or are ready for."

She nodded. He took her hand and rubbed it between the both of his.

"Thank you for this afternoon," he said, kissing it, "You're very beautiful."

She looked at him.

"Thank you," she said, "You fit a pair of jeans nicely yourself."

"I'm going to miss you when you go to Denver in several days," he said.

"It's only for the day, unless the hearing gets postponed."

"Still…

She looked at him, feeling suddenly shy.

"I'll miss you too."

Then they kissed again for a while.

* * *

Butterfly walked up to C.J. while she worked on her computer, trying to finish the final details of the writ.

"What's up," C.J. said, looking up at her.

"You were kind of looking at me funny during dinner," she said, "Is anything wrong?"

C.J. smiled.

"No, nothing," she said, patting the couch, "Sit down."

Butterfly shrugged.

"Okay."

"So how was your day," C.J. asked.

"Except for the rain, pretty good."

"Yeah, that was quite a storm, wasn't it," Matt said, looking up from the magazine he was reading.

Butterfly looked at both of them, strangely.

"Are you feeling okay," she said.

"I'm feeling great," Matt said.

"I'm fine…just been busy working," C.J. said.

"Oh…I kissed Carter."

C.J. looked up not sure whether to be happy that Butterfly told her or concerned about how casual her voice sounded. She chose instead to be relieved.

"Really," she said, "When did this happen?"

"When we hid out in that barn on the far corner of the meadow during the rain storm," she said, "It's not like there was anything else to do."

Matt suppressed a smile. C.J. glared at him then tried to address the issue racking her mind for the right words.

"Butterfly…kissing is something you do when you care about another person, because you want to…express yourself in that way, to show them how much you care."

"Hmm…I thought that was sex," Butterfly said.

C.J. swallowed noisily. Matt tried harder to suppress laughter behind his magazine.

"That's a different conversation more advanced than kissing," C.J. said, "So how did you feel about kissing Carter. He's a nice boy but you hardly know him."

"It felt…interesting," Butterfly said, "Much different than Spike."

"Well…"

"And Jesse," Butterfly continued.

_Jesse?_

C.J. slowed her breathing down.

"So you like Carter?"

"Of course I do," Butterfly said, rolling her eyes, "I mean, you liked Brick didn't you?"

Matt raised a brow at C.J.

"I don't know if 'like' is quite the word I'd use," she said.

"Brick, wasn't he your boyfriend when you were Butterfly's age," Matt said, "And didn't he have a motorcycle?"

That got Butterfly's attention.

"You had a bike," C.J. said to Matt.

"You had a biker boyfriend," Butterfly asked, her mouth agape.

"For a while," C.J. said, "We weren't really that serious."

Matt narrowed his eyes.

"Didn't you go to the spring dance with him in eighth grade?"

"I tried to," she said, "My uncle grounded me. Told me I couldn't see him anymore."

"A-ha, I knew it," Butterfly said, her eyes lighting up.

"No, my uncle was right," C.J. said, "I snuck out one night when I was grounded to meet Brick and let's just say, we ended breaking up anyway."

"Why?"

C.J. paused.

"Because being with an older guy doesn't make you any older," she said, "You're still the same person and it became clear that I wasn't ready for a guy like him."

"That sucks," she said.

"No, actually I think that's when I learned that I wanted to be with a boy who liked me for myself, not just because of my body."

"That sounds corny," Butterfly said.

"Maybe, but it's worked for me since then," she said, "Except for a bad choice here and there."

"What about you," Butterfly asked Matt.

Now C.J. raised her brow.

"It took me a little longer than her to figure that out," Matt said, "But then they say that girls mature faster than boys."

"Yes we do," C.J. agreed.

"Really," Butterfly asked, "If that's true, then doesn't it make sense that since women mature faster, they should go out with older guys who are closer to their maturity level rather than their age?"

C.J. didn't know how to answer that question.

* * *

Later, Matt and C.J. stopped in front of her bedroom. He pulled her closer to him and started kissing her. She put her hands around his neck and rubbed the back of it, enjoying the moment. After a while, he looked at her and she felt so secure in his embrace. She never wanted to leave it.

"She really got you with that question," he said.

"I know," she said, "Hopefully I'll be able to have a better answer when I get back from Denver."

He looked at her quietly. She tried to read him.

"What's wrong," she asked.

He stroked a lock of her hair back.

"How would you feel if I flew you up to Denver, stayed for the day to talk to some contacts and then flew you home? It would save you money on plane fare, you get better seating and definitely better food."

She paused to think about it then nodded.

"I'd like that."

"I'd feel better after everything that happened to have you in my sight," he said.

She wasn't sure what he meant by 'everything' whether it encompassed the attempts on her life or what happened in the barn.

"I feel better having you around too."

"How about now," he asked.

"Especially now," she said, resting her head against his chest listening to his heart beat.


	21. Chapter 21

Chapter 21---Another installment up. I hope you enjoy it and thanks for your comments and for reading this story! I'm doing some outlining for the next part of "Glimmer" and will be adding more chapters pretty soon and I'm not sure where the attempt at doing cross-fiction with _Walker, Texas Ranger_ is going (which someone challenged me to write) but it's interesting having characters. especially two strong, independent female attorneys, from two different shows interact. Thanks again for reading! I really appreciate it.

* * *

C.J. woke up in the morning thinking that there was some place she had to be. But after looking at the clock and discovering it was still early, she sunk back in her bed. She had dreamed that she had stood before the federal court to deliver an oral argument in the case and then when she looked down at her notes, had seen only blank paper.

She closed her eyes and mentally counted the days that she had left to prepare for the hearing in Denver and sighed.

She heard a knock on the door.

"Who's there?"

"It's me, Butterfly. I need to ask you something."

C.J. put her hands over her face, remembering their conversation last night. Then she remembered the rest of what happened yesterday as well and her cheeks warmed.

"Come in," she said.

Butterfly opened her door and bounded in fully dressed. C.J. propped herself up on one elbow.

"What'd you need?"

The girl sat down on the bed.

"Thanks for not being upset with me about kissing Carter," she said.

C.J. sat up straighter.

"I'm glad you trusted me enough to tell me about it."

"You seemed calm when I told you that there have been a few guys on the list ahead of Carter."

C.J. smiled.

"I kissed a couple of guys by the time I was your age, besides Brick."

Butterfly sat down beside her.

"What were they like?"

C.J. thought carefully.

"The first guy, he was very cute and had a fear of the dark as long as I knew him. And I was just trying to help him…overcome it. So at a party I invited him into the closet and said if he came in with me, I'd cure him. So he did and we kissed."

"Yeah right."

"No, it's true."

"Did he overcome his fear?"

C.J. laughed.

"I would say so!"

Butterfly grew quiet.

"I just wanted Spike to like me."

"I know that Butterfly," C.J. said, "Better than you know."

"Really?"

C.J. nodded.

"I never was popular with boys when I was in school," she said, "I think they thought I was a nerd, always studying. But I really wanted to be a lawyer ever since I was a young girl especially after my father died. More than I wanted a boyfriend."

"Why not have both?"

"That was hard back then," C.J. said, "But I did have a couple of boyfriends in high school and I went to parties. But my focus was on other things. I also worked on the ranch a lot until I went to university. That didn't leave me with a lot of time to spend with friends."

"But your best friend is a guy," Butterfly said.

"Yes…and he has been since we were younger than you."

"Didn't that bother your boyfriends?"

C.J. shrugged.

"Not really and if it did, then they wouldn't have been my boyfriends."

Matt knocked.

"We're almost ready," Butterfly said, "He's making breakfast."

C.J. swung her legs over and got out of bed.

"I'll be there faster than he can get his first Texas omelet off the skillet."

* * *

She just missed getting the first omelet but settled for the second and sat at the table to eat it with some orange juice.

"What's on the schedule today," Matt asked as he joined her.

"Finishing up here and then emailing the documents out to the team in Denver," she said, "I'll be so glad when it's done."

"That seems like something to celebrate," he said, "How about dinner later on?"

She thought about it.

"That'd be nice."

He smiled.

"I do have to go check those geological records in town later this afternoon," she said.

"I'll help you," he said, "Then we can have some dinner afterward."

"It's a date."

"I'll be out with Jed and Reed today," he said.

"Carter and I are going with them," Butterfly said, eating some toast, "But don't worry about us."

"Who's worried? Have a good time," C.J. said.

"We'll be teaching Butterfly how to repair some fencing," Matt said.

"Oh then she'll be tired to get into any trouble," C.J. said winking at Butterfly, "But what about you?"

"Me, too tired to get into trouble," Matt said, "Hasn't happened yet."

"I also sent out feelers on some of those documents that you brought me," C.J. said, "I hope I get something useful back. We need all the ammunition we can get at that hearing."

"I think you'll do fine," Matt said, "You've worked really hard."

She sighed as she took her dishes to the sink to rinse them.

"It usually takes much more than that," she said, "including getting the right judge to hear your case."

Matt joined her at the sink.

"You could talk the spots off an Appaloosa," he said.

C.J. raised her brow.

"Interesting analogy."

"Best I could come up with…"

She laughed.

"On such short notice."

He looked chagrined.

"I've got to finish up work here before I can worry about spots," C.J. said.

"You do that and I'll see you later," he said.

Butterfly got her things and left the cabin to start towards the barn. Matt stayed behind a moment.

"I almost forgot something."

"Me too."

His face looked puzzled.

"What was it?"

C.J. put her hands on her hips. He smiled.

"Oh yeah…"

He reached over for her and she put her arms around him and they kissed goodbye.

"You're hard to leave," he said, brushing her hair back.

"I'll see you later," she said.

"That's a promise."

* * *

After they left, C.J. got back to her computer and back to work. She wanted to finally finish her legal briefs and mail them off. Once she did that, she could finally breathe. It had been a long several weeks working hard first with Jason and Maggie and then losing them to the accident that wasn't an accident. She opened up her declaration file and merged the rest of the declarations with her brief as exhibits. She never failed to recognize how important the first-hand accounts of her clients and witnesses usually were in lawsuits she had filed. Sometimes they made all the difference. She prayed this time that would be the case as well.

She wondered not for the first time what the opposition had prepared for Denver. She knew that in between the times that they spent harassing her legal team and even worse, they were conferring with their lawyers about what paperwork to file in response to the legal challenges being waged against them. This battle was being fought on different fronts.

After a while, she heard a knock on her door and walked to answer the door. Thea stood there bearing gifts.

"Here's some more of my soup," she said, "I want to make sure that you're eating right."

C.J. smiled.

"Come on in," she said, opening the door wider.

They both walked on in the kitchen. Thea put the soup on the stove and flipped some dials to keep it warm while C.J. got some dishes out of the cabinet. They served themselves some of the soup, stocked with chicken broth and vegetables and returned to the living room.

"So how are things going on the legal front," Thea said.

C.J. sighed, flipping her hair back.

"Better than they have been," she said, "I'm just about done."

"That must be a relief."

C.J. nodded.

"Definitely," she said, "But it's bittersweet too. Jason and Maggie put so much into these briefs. They should be here to finish the hard work with me."

"They should, and if it weren't for some truly desperate men, they would be."

"It's not right," C.J. said, "I know, I'm used to the downside of doing what I do, even the threats but these men got away with it."

Thea sighed.

"With no shortage of help from Mayor Parker and Sheriff Daniels."

"It's been quieter lately," C.J. said, "They've been laying low. That makes me both relieved and wary."

Thea put her hand on C.J.'s.

"You know you have people looking out for you," she said, "People who aren't going to let anything happen to you. I know Matt and Jed won't."

"I don't think I would have made it this far without either of them," C.J. agreed, eating her soup thoughtfully.

"But you're right to be careful," Thea said, "You just can't trust people who are this ruthless to try to kill people who are just trying to help us keep our way of life."

"I know," C.J. said, "Thankfully at least they are the minority."

* * *

Matt and Jed watched as Carter showed Butterfly step by step how to split fence. They settled back to repairing a section of fence that they had started several days ago. The day shone warm and Matt looked at a group of horses in the distance, grazing.

"This is a great spot," he said.

Jed nodded, picking up a hammer and driving a nail in the faded wood.

"That it is," he said, "And we want to keep it that way. The world might need its tourist traps and ski resorts but it needs its open spaces as well."

Matt scratched his head.

"I'm beginning to think that it's not a ski resort that's the focus of the developers' campaign."

Jed turned to look at him.

"What do you mean," he said, "Oh, you think that there's something else about the land that interests them."

"Think about it," Matt said, "They buy up the land for cheap and then sit on it for a while and do nothing."

"That's true," Jed said, "Certainly true enough out here."

Matt picked up some wiring and unrolled it.

"So why is that," he asked, "Some of this land was purchased over a year ago."

"And it's sitting idle," Jed said, nodding.

"My partner, Brody told me that these guys did the same thing back East and then after a year, wound up selling the land making a huge profit."

Jed narrowed his eyes.

"How'd they do that?"

"He's still looking into that," Matt said, "And C.J.'s interested in the geological surveys. That meeting she had with her source…"

"The one the deputies interrupted."

"Her unknown source gave her information strongly implying that this was indeed the case."

"Well, we're going to need more local information here," Jed said.

Matt nodded.

"After we're done here, I might do more checking," he said, "C.J. and I are heading to town to go hunt down those records if they exist."

"You'd better hurry before Kilroy and his boys get wind of it," Jed said, "Records have a way of disappearing when they become too important."

"We'll get there," Matt said, picking up his hammer, "I just hope there's something that will shed some much needed light on why these men really targeted Silver Lode."

* * *

C.J. went back for a second helping of soup, realizing how hungry she had been and returned to the couch.

"So when are you leaving to go to Denver?"

C.J. tucked her feet under her.

"Houston's flying us up in two days."

Thea looked surprised but pleased.

"I'm glad he's going with you," she said.

"So am I," C.J. said, "It's just for the day and hopefully the judge will render at least a tentative ruling on the injunction."

"So you and he cleared the air then?"

C.J. looked up from her soup and nodded.

"Yes, your advice to both of us was very helpful."

Thea smiled.

"I'm glad," she said, "So things are working out better now?"

C.J. grew thoughtful, remembering what they had shared yesterday.

"A lot better," she said.

"He cares a great deal about you," Thea said, "And I know you feel the same about him."

"Yeah I do," C.J. said, "And I think it's in the past week that I've realized just how much."

The older woman sipped her soup.

"I see," she said, "At least I think so."

C.J. rubbed her forehead.

"I love my new life that I've built for myself, but I want him to be a big part of it."

"I think he wants that too, C.J.," Thea said, "You just have to allow him in."

C.J. bowed her head.

"That's been the hard part," she said, "I'm still trying to figure out if I am able to do that with anyone."

"That shouldn't be an issue because he's not just 'anyone'," Thea said, "He's someone you've known for a long time, who you trust with your life."

"But my feelings are different."

Thea nodded.

"I know that," she said, "That's a much harder struggle."

C.J. rubbed her hands, focusing on her words.

"I just feel so unsure of myself and I don't want to mess this up."

"There's nothing to mess up," Thea said, "Matt's never going to hold all this that you're going through against you. He's a smart guy and he cares way too much about the larger picture and that's the future."

"I do too," C.J. said, "More than I've cared about anything."

Thea smiled.

"Well see, there you go," she said, "You're coming from the same place and that makes it much easier to meet in the middle."

* * *

Butterfly ate her sandwich, looking at the clouds moving across the sky which was as blue as a robin's egg.

"Do you think it will rain again?"

Carter looked up.

"Maybe," he said, "Late-afternoon thunderstorms are common in these parts this time of year."

"Hurricanes are common this time of year in Texas," she said.

"Do you like living there?"

"Where my grandmother lives," she said, "It's okay, but I love Houston."

Matt walked up to them with his lunch and sat down under a tree.

"How you two doing," he said, "I noticed that you put up quite a bit of new fence."

Carter smiled.

"Butterfly's a quick learner."

Matt looked at the young man.

"Yeah well, with some things, yes," he said.

Carter looked confused.

"Sir?"

"Now with other things, it's just better to take your time," Matt continued.

Butterfly sighed.

"I told him about what happened in the barn."

Carter's face turned rosy pink despite his deep tan.

"Sir…"

"Call me Matt or Houston, everyone else does," Matt said, "Just don't call me 'sir':

"Yes sir…I mean Houston."

"That's better," Matt said.

"I…uh it just happened," Carter said, "I didn't mean anything by it."

Butterfly looked at him.

"What do you mean it didn't mean anything?"

Carter looked chagrined.

"I didn't mean it that way," he said, "It was just…spontaneous."

Butterfly folded her arms.

"I thought you liked that."

Carter looked at her, then at Matt.

"Well, I do…but I understand where he's coming from too."

Butterfly turned her face towards Matt.

"I thought you were the one who was cool with this," she said, "C.J. even seemed pretty calm and I thought she'd have a fit."

"C.J. cares a lot about you, Butterfly," Matt said, "I do too and she gave you some awfully good advice last night."

"I remember," she mumbled.

"I think you should do a better job of remembering what she said and try it," Matt said, leaning back against the tree and opening up his sandwich.

"What," Butterfly said, "She told me she kissed quite a few guys when she was my age."

"She did, did she?"

"Yes, and for different reasons," Butterfly said, "Like that loser who said he was scared of the dark and she actually bought it."

Matt grew silent.

"Oh, that guy."

"Yeah and there were others besides Brick," Butterfly said, "So how come she's allowed to kiss every guy and I'm getting heat because I kissed Carter."

Matt looked at Carter who looked completely lost. At least he sat there, not looking like he was about to bolt. One point in his favor, Matt thought.

"Look, Butterfly," Matt said, "The point is, you're a young lady with people who care about you who are just trying to help you."

"But I don't need help," she said, "I just need to live my life."

Matt sighed.

"And you will and you'll do great things with it, but you've got rules to follow first, to help get you to that point."

"You sound like Aunt Chris."

"I hope so," Matt said, "She's a smart lady and she loves you."

Butterfly lowered her head.

"I know," she said, "So I have to stay locked up inside some tower until I'm an adult?"

"I didn't say that…"

Butterfly got up, gave him one last look and went back to working on the fence.

Carter stood up, looking uncomfortable. Matt related, because he knew what it was like being in his shoes.

"I'm sorry sir…I mean Houston," he said, "It won't happen again."

Matt watched the younger man wondering if he'd ever learn how to do this right by the time he had his own kids to overprotect and hoping by then, he would do a much better job than he just did now.

* * *

After Thea left, C.J. concentrated on the work in front of her and after several hours, finally completed it and emailed it as attachments to the attorneys in Denver. As she watched the email being sent, she felt a sense of relief fill her. She left her computer to make herself some tea and run a bath. After turning on the faucets, she poured the lavender salts under the flow of the water.

Her cell phone rang and she answered it.

"Hi, did you get the briefs….That's great… Call or email me back if you have any questions or additions…Yeah I'm glad it's finally done…Thanks…See you in a couple of days."

She smiled as she clicked off the phone. She grabbed her tea and went to relax in the tub for a while. She closed her eyes as she lay in the warm water, thinking back to when she had first started working on this case and everything that had happened since. Her heart sank when she thought of the two legal professionals who had become her friends lying in the hospital because of their commitment to this case.

Of course, it hadn't been all bad, she thought a smile returning to her face.

The phone rang in the other room. She sighed, wondering if she should just let it ring. Finally, she stood up and wrapping a towel around her walked into the living room to get it.

"Hello…"

"You think you've won, don't you?"

Him, again. Crawling out from beneath his rock.

"Listen, now that I know who you are," she said, "I would advise you to stop calling and stop harassing me."

"Or you'll do what," the man said, "We both know what side Daniels is on in this battle."

C.J. grew silent, as his words only confirmed what she already knew.

"So if you want to come out of this in one piece," he said, "If you want the same for your boyfriend…"

C.J. 's heart beat quickened as she listened.

"You'll quit this case right now and just walk away."

"I can't do that," she said, "But if anything happens to him, I will hunt you down and you'll pay for that."

"We'll see about that."

He hung up and C.J. looked at her phone, wishing that the incoming number had appeared on her Caller ID, instead of "private".

She sat down on the couch, her head resting on her hands as she tried to figure out what to do.

* * *

Matt and Butterfly entered the cabin and C.J. looked up from the couch at both of them.

"What happened," she said, noticing the tension between them.

"Never mind," Butterfly said, going into the kitchen.

C.J. looked up at Matt.

"She and I had a talk about what happened yesterday."

"What?"

"Between her and Carter in the barn."

C.J. put her hand on her chest.

"Oh."

"Yeah, it went about that well," Matt said, sitting next to her on the couch.

"Where was Carter at the time you had this…discussion?"

Matt ran his hand through his hair.

"Sitting right there," he said, "I have to say he handled the whole thing very well."

C.J. sighed.

"Houston…"

"The discussion started and kind of took on a life of its own."

C.J. nodded.

Butterfly returned with a soda and her iPod.

"I'm leaving," she said.

"Where," C.J. asked.

Butterfly shrugged.

"Just to sit outside for a while," she said, looking at Matt. "It's a bit stifling in here."

C.J. chuckled as the girl left them, slamming the door shut behind her.

"It's going to take her a while to cool off," she said.

"I know," Matt said, "But she did tell me about some of your history at her age."

"History," C.J. said, "What does that mean?"

"About kissing some boys including one who was afraid of the dark," Matt said, "She thought he was a loser."

C.J. smiled.

"He most definitely is not nor has he ever been a loser," she said, "In fact, he's grown into being a great kisser."

Matt narrowed his eyes.

"Grown into it?"

C.J. put up her hand.

"Okay, has always been a great kisser."

"That's better," he said, softly, "And you've always been a great one too."

She put her arms around him and kissed him gently.

"Thank you," she said, then suddenly embracing him harder.

He looked at her face when she released him.

"Is everything all right?"

She brightened.

"Yeah everything's fine," she said, "But we better get headed to town before City Hall closes."

He nodded, taking her hand.

"Let's go."

* * *

The same weary woman met them and led them into the records room, shaking her head. C.J. thought that the employee should be more concerned about the disorganized state of the records room than their repeat visits. She headed towards the back of the room and started sorting through the boxes and shelves.

"This place is such a mess," she said.

Matt joined her and pulled down a heavy box from an upper shelf.

"Let's see what's hiding in here."

C.J. pulled out papers stacking them on the table.

"Water records," she said, "from their board. Years and years of them. Oh wait, I think I see a council vote on an ordinance on yard sales that passed in 1970."

Matt pulled some papers out of his box.

"I have some environmental impact reports from…the construction of the movie theater we went to the other night."

"Did it pass," she said, looking at it.

She went to pull down another box then she remembered.

"No wait," she said, reaching to search her purse.

"Did you bring that record with you?"

She nodded, pulling it out.

"Look at the bottom of the page," she said, "See this…Now let's see if we can find this on any of the boxes."

They searched the row and the next and then found a smaller box tucked in between two over-sized containers. She picked it up and put it on the table. They opened it up and began sifting through it. Finally, she pulled up a piece of paper.

"Here's one," she said, "Look, it's a geological survey for the site near where the day spa sits that was purchased by Kilroy last year."

Matt frowned.

"It says that the survey determined that there might be a vein of gold in there," he said, "But this is at least 10 years old."

"Want to bet the one that the city assessor signed off last year doesn't mention anything about any potential vein?"

He smiled.

"That's some good work, Parsons.

"I think that there's a good chance that if we do access the assessments that were done before Kilroy purchased those properties, they'll all be negative for any potential valuable resources sitting on any of those parcels."

"We have to find some of those older records," he said.

"I'll go copy this one and return it where I found it."

He watched her go and then resumed searching the box but came up empty. He hoped that Kilroy and his men hadn't gotten to them before they did.

C.J. brought the record and the copy back. He put the original back in the box and she tucked a copy in her pocket and gave one to Matt for safekeeping.

"Just to be on the safe side," she said.

He nodded.

"You can trust me to keep anything safe for you."

She smiled, and stroked his cheek.

"I know that."

Matt picked up the tone in her voice.

"What is it," he said.

She remained silent for a long moment.

"You can tell me," he said.

She nodded.

"I received another warning phone call," she said, "But this time they also threatened to harm you."

He took her in his arms and stroked her hair.

"It's okay," he said, "You don't have to worry about me."

She pulled away, her face guarded.

"But I do," she said, "I don't know what I'd do if anything happened to you."

"Nothing bad's going to happen to either one of us," he said, "Some good things maybe…"

She smiled.

"Like what," she said.

"I can think of a few," he said.

They fell into each other's arms and their lips met, softly at first then with more urgency. He pushed her back gently so that she pressed against the table. It creaked and they both looked at it, dubiously.

"I don't know if this is work," she said, before he kissed her again.

She ran her hands across his broad back, enjoying the feel of his muscles tensing beneath his shirt. He ran his hands through her hair. She closed her eyes, focusing on the sensations his touch invoked as his lips moved down her neck. Both of them didn't notice the table wobble but they did when it toppled to the floor with a loud crash, taking several boxes of municipal records with it. Fortunately, Matt grabbed her to keep her from falling.

They both looked down at the table and scattered papers with dismay. Then they looked at each other and started laughing.

"A woman certainly has to be on her toes around you," C.J. said, her eyes dancing.

He smiled.

"It helps."

Suddenly, they heard steps approaching.

"Oh dear," C.J. said, "I don't think she's going to be very happy with what we just did to the records room."

The door knob turned and in walked Sydney followed by a burly man wearing two cameras around his neck and holding a tripod. Sydney looked at both of them.

"Am I interrupting something?"


	22. Chapter 22

Chapter 22---Here's another installment. I hope you enjoy it and thanks for your comments!

* * *

C.J. and Matt looked up at Sydney and the photographer. The photographer immediately began taking pictures of the table and the papers spread out all over the floor.

"What happened here," Sydney asked, looking around at the mess.

Matt looked at C.J.

"Nothing," he said.

C.J. dropped on the ground to pick up the papers. Matt put the box on the floor and helped her replace them back in the box.

"What were you looking for," Sydney said, "More documents?"

C.J. looked up.

"I guess you could say that," she said.

Sydney joined them on the ground, picking up stray papers to look at them. She dropped them in the box without much interest.

"What kind of documents?"

"Property records," C. J. said.

"Why," Sydney asked.

"You're an investigative reporter," C.J. said, "You can find that out on your own."

Sydney sighed, picking up more documents wondering if there was something about them she had missed.

"Why don't you like me?"

C.J. looked at her quizzically.

"Who said I didn't like you," she said, "It's just that you've never seemed particularly interested in this court case."

"I never said I wasn't interested."

"You don't seem nearly as interested in this lawsuit as you do Houston's pectorals."

Matt turned his attention away from filling the box with wayward documents to the two women talking about him.

"How did the subject change from the legal system to my chest?"

Sydney tilted her head, examining Matt who suddenly felt like a bug under a microscope.

"You do have nice…muscles."

"Thank you," Matt said.

He turned around to watch the photographer snapping pictures at the toppled table.

"Why's he here?"

Sydney took out her faded notebook and pen.

"He's here to do some spot news photography for the press conference later…"

C.J. and Matt looked at each other.

"Press conference?"

Sydney nodded.

"Mayor Parker, Sheriff Daniels and others will be speaking on some issues on the front steps of this building."

C.J. wondered what they were planning to say this time. She sighed, as she picked up more papers reaching her hands across the floor, hoping that the Keeper of the Records standing guard outside wouldn't walk in why they were all askew.

"So did you have an accident," Sydney asked.

"Is this going to be in the front page of the paper," Matt asked.

Sydney rolled her eyes.

"We might not be the _New York Times_ out here," she said, "But our readers expect a bit more than a table falling over at City Hall as the headliner."

She went over and inspected it.

"Though it looks like it's definitely down for the count," she said, "Edna's going to have your hide."

"Edna is…"

"She's the guardian of the records in this room," Sydney said.

"I'll pay for the damages," Matt looked at C.J. and winked, "Gladly."

C.J. smiled, as she picked up the box to place back on the shelf.

"So are we ever going to get together for that feature," Sydney said, taking out her daily planner.

"Why are you so interested in writing about me anyway," Matt said.

He gestured towards C.J.

"Now there's your story," he said, "What she's working with impacts the lives of most of the people in this town, not to mention the ranchers."

Sydney touched some buttons.

"Okay, so are you free tomorrow," she said.

C.J. came back and looked at both of them.

"Of course he is," she said, "We're not leaving for Denver until the day after that."

Sydney frowned.

"Why you going there?"

"C.J.'s got a major court hearing on the injunction," Matt said, "She sent all her papers in and she's going to be a force to be reckoned with in front of that judge. You should check it out."

"I heard that Kilroy's hired pitbulls," Sydney said, "So what about early afternoon? We can do the photo session after we do the interview."

C.J. looked at Matt, noticing that his shoulders tensed and his eyes searched for an escape route.

"That should work," she said, "He's got some ranch work in the morning but anytime after one should be fine."

Sydney jotted it down in her planner.

"That should work well since Joseph," she said, gesturing to the photographer, "He should be back from taking photos at the day spa."

C.J. smiled widely.

"Great," she said, "Then you're good to go."

Matt stared at C.J. She shrugged her shoulders back and returned to sorting through documents.

"Matt, wear something casual," Sydney said, "We'll meet at the diner."

"I might be in my ranching clothes," he warned her.

"That's okay," she said, "This is cowboy country remember?"

Joseph walked up to her.

"We'd better get heading outside," he said, "We need to set up there a little early."

Sydney nodded and tucked her notepad away.

"We're off," she said, and she looked at Matt.

"See you tomorrow for that interview," she said, "Don't forget."

* * *

After they left, Matt folded his arms and scrutinized C.J. as she stacked more papers into a box. Feeling his eyes on her, she turned around to look up at him.

"What's wrong," she said.

He looked at her standing before him looking honestly perplexed, her hair pulled back off of her face and her brown eyes staring right back. Something in them convinced him that she knew the answer to her own question.

"What was that all about?"

She looked at him, seeing confusion in his eyes and her heart missed a beat.

"I just think that doing this article is exactly what you need."

He considered that and narrowed his eyes.

"No, I think it's what you need," he said, quietly, "or at least what you think you need."

Not what she expected to hear at all. She rubbed her forehead and put the documents in her hands down on the copier.

"What do you mean," she asked.

"You're putting up a wall," he said.

"No I'm not."

"Then why are you pushing this issue," he said.

"Because I want to read it when it's done," she said.

"Why?"

She bent her head but not before Matt caught the trace of a smile.

"Because you're sexy as hell and…"

"And…"

She paused.

"You're very passionate about what you do and you're very warm-hearted," she said, "You care deeply about people and allow them feel to feel safe when they're around you but you're not pushy…most of the time."

His expression softened and she linked her arm in his own.

"You're the best friend I could have ever had," she said, "You've always been there for your friends, no questions asked."

"But the article…"

Her voice grew quiet.

"I think the world needs to know that it's a better place with men like you in it."

He studied her face, which betrayed a mixture of happiness and uncertainty. He stroked her skin, tilting her chin up with his fingers.

"Okay, I'll do the article," he said, "Under one condition."

"What's that," she said, softly.

"That you realize that at the end of the day I'm coming home to you."

Her eyes sparkled.

"I'll keep that in mind."

* * *

Later, they joined a growing crowd of what had become a familiar sight at City Hall. Matt and C.J. ran into Bonnie and Jed standing by a tree.

"How'd you find out about this," Matt asked.

"Phone tree," Jed said, simply.

Bonnie looked at all the people gathering and shrugged.

"I was giving some…advice to Paul and Barbara, you know the couple that met at the mini-mart in West Valley and are getting married next spring."

C.J. nodded.

"Nice one," she said, "I think I remember Barbara at one of Thea's parties. She was really nice."

"That she is," Bonnie agreed, "And this is a really great match. I think they'll be very happy together."

"That's really nice," C.J. said.

"What about you, C.J.?"

C.J. looked up, startled.

"What do you mean?"

Bonnie smiled.

"If you'd like me to introduce you…"

C.J. laughed.

"No, I'm fine, thanks. "

"Are you sure," she said, "You know, Grant the guy who owns the blacksmith shop is interested in meeting someone."

"Grant…isn't he the one who saved those horses during the flash flood?"

Bonnie nodded.

"Yeah, he's a widower but it's been several years since Cindy passed."

"He's very nice, " C.J. said, "But I'm not looking."

Bonnie shrugged.

"Okay, well if you change your mind…"

* * *

Nearby, Matt and Jed stood watching the crowd and for anyone coming out of the building.

"What do you think is the topic of today," Matt asked Jed.

The ranch hand shrugged.

"With Parker or Daniels, it could be anything."

"That's the part that concerns me," Matt said.

They shifted their attention to some activity on the steps as Parker and Daniels walked out of City Hall followed by several elected officials.

Matt looked at C.J. who walked up to them.

"Don't get arrested today."

She raised her brows.

"I don't plan to," she said.

They watched Parker and Daniels supervising two men who set up the podium. Sydney tailed by Joseph walked up several steps to check out different camera angles.

Suddenly, the crowd hushed as the two men joined by Kilroy walked up to the podium.

"Greetings," Parker said, "We're here to announce that the city council's just voted to submit a amicus curae, a friend of the court brief, on behalf of Kilroy's development firm."

Before he even finished speaking, boos resounded from the crowd.

"Recall Parker," a man yelled, "Kick the bum out of office."

C.J. looked at Jed and Matt.

"When did they vote on that issue?"

"Good question," Jed said.

"Quiet down," Parker said, to the crowd, "The city attorney advised us on why it's for the best interests of the town to move in this direction."

"Some back door deal," Bonnie said, shaking her head.

"What'd you expect," Jed said, "We've got to completely change the power structure in our city and that means electing better people."

"I don't know who we've got who's willing to run for office against them," Bonnie said.

Parker continued, but the crowd began to tune him out.

"We need to bring viable economic growth to our small town in these most challenging times…"

"Doesn't he know that this whole thing might be a scam," Bonnie said, shaking her head.

"I doubt he'd care if he did know," C.J. said, "Maybe he does and he's getting money under the table from Kilroy."

Matt nodded his head.

"That's certainly likely, I think."

"Excuse me," C.J. said, "I think I need to get something to drink."

* * *

She walked off, needing to get away from the crowd for a while. She headed back to the diner and bought a Cola. She walked outside and bumped into Nick.

"Excuse me," she said, until she realized he was no stranger.

He smiled.

"Interesting seeing you here," he said.

She looked up at him.

"How so," she said, "I've always been here at these side shows. But no matter what Parker or any of his cronies say, we're still moving forward in Denver."

He moved closer. She put up her hand to stop him.

"You'd better back away," she said, "Or you're going to end up on the ground again"

"I think we got off on the wrong foot…"

"No, actually you started off exactly as you wanted by making anonymous threats like a coward."

"You can't prove anything," he said.

"I don't have to, because then you attacked and threatened me in the diner."

His jaw worked.

"And you told me that when Kilroy ran out of options for dealing with us legal folks, it would be your turn and that you were worse."

He smiled easily but it didn't reach his eyes.

"I might have exaggerated."

C.J. glared at him.

"Look, whatever it is you want, you're not going to get it," she said, "We're going to beat you in court. So if you're fishing for a deal, maybe you'd better go run to Parker."

"What is it that I want?"

She stared at him.

"Get out of my way."

He folded his arms.

"You can't force me," he said, "Hey are you one of those women who are angry at the world, at the male species."

"What," she said.

"Because I read about what happened to you and all that, and I think that's a bad deal but you really shouldn't be taking it out on the male gender…"

C.J. looked at him in disbelief.

"I mean, I'm a nice guy when people aren't pushing my buttons."

C.J. struggled to control her temper. She clenched her fists at her side.

"So you threatening me is my fault," she said, "You really are twisted."

"Now I told you I'm not threatening anyone here," he said, "You're simply overreacting to some crank calls probably done by bored teenagers."

C.J. nodded.

"You're probably right," she said, "The emotional maturity of the person doing them is probably at that level."

She turned away to leave. He grabbed her arm. She gave him an icy look.

"Remove your arm," she said, "I'm only asking once."

He dropped her arm.

"Oh and if you ever harm or threaten Mr. Houston again in any way shape or form," she said, "I will like I said hunt you down and I will find you."

"You're talking to the wrong person," he protested.

"I'm leaving now," she said, "The only conversation I will be having with any of you is through your lawyers."

* * *

She walked back to where her friends still stood listening to Daniels.

"What did I miss," she asked.

"Daniels is speaking about threats that he alleged were made against Kilroy."

C.J. turned her head towards Daniels.

"What?"

She crossed her arms to listen to the speech.

"…and we will hunt down these perpetrators and prosecute them to the fullest extent of the law. We will not tolerate any unlawfulness in this town towards businessmen trying to improve our way of life."

C.J. sighed angrily.

"What the hell is he talking about," she said, "Houston just got threatened. My legal team is in the hospital after getting threatened."

"Any tips from any of you that will help bring these evil doers who are trying to disrupt the fabric of what makes this town great will be greatly appreciated…"

Bonnie snorted.

"Fat chance he'll be getting any tips from anyone in this town," she said.

C.J. turned to Jed.

"Do you think there were any real threats?"

He shrugged.

"Could be," he said, "There's a lot of angry people out there but then he could be lying."

"I ran into Nick at the diner," she said, "He was trying to make nice in a way that's less than sincere."

Jed looked concerned.

"What did you say to him?"

"I told him that if anything happened to Houston, I'd hunt him down."

"I gather he didn't take that very well," Jed said.

"No he didn't," she said, "Where's Houston anyway?"

* * *

Matt walked through the parking lot. While standing with the others, he thought he had seen something suspicious. A person had been lurking in the back of the crowd throwing furtive glances around, an action which had caught Matt's attention. So he had tried to approach the person but he or she had slipped back into the crowd. He heard voices talking, looked up and saw Nick talking with two other men. He moved towards them.

Nick stood with two of his top men having a discussion.

"We don't have much time," one man said, "The hearing's in Denver and if the ranchers' attorneys present their case and the judge likes it, it's all over for us."

"That won't happen," Nick said, "There won't be any case presented."

"How can you be so sure," one of them asked.

"Because I've got some men working on stopping Ms Parsons and her bodyguard from even making it to Denver. Our contact told us he filed a flight plan for a trip to Denver day after tomorrow with one passenger."

"What are you saying," the man said.

"I'm saying that our problems are just about to be eliminated," Nick said, "and once that happens, we'll home free."

Matt walked up to the three men who looked up from their conversation when they heard footsteps approaching them.

"Hi Mr. Houston," Nick said, smiling.

"This isn't a social call," Matt said, sizing his companions up and then dismissing them.

The other two men backed up a few steps as if they knew that.

"No, I'd stay and listen to this if I were you," Matt said, "Because your friend threatened my friend."

Nick laughed uneasily.

"Don't listen to him," he said, "I did no such thing..."

Matt put his hand up, to shut him up.

"I'm just here to tell you that I'm giving you one last opportunity to do the smart thing and to keep your energy focused in more legitimate channels like the court system and not on making threats."

"You're talking to the wrong person," Nick said, "That's what I just told your friend."

"You approached Ms Parsons," Matt said, "Bad move on your part."

"Actually we just bumped into each other," Nick said, pulling on his collar, "I tried to be nice but I thought she was going to hit me."

Matt smiled despite himself.

"You deserve much more than that," he said, "But I'm not going to do Ms Parsons much good if I wind up in jail."

"No you won't, will you?"

Matt moved closer to Nick who backed up a step. He threw the developer a hard look.

"You'd better stay away from her," he said, "Or you won't have to worry about going to jail."

Nick looked away, then took a defiant posture.

"Are you threatening me," he said.

Matt smiled.

"Not at all," he said, "Have a nice day."

* * *

By the time Matt returned, the speeches had ended at least for the day and people had begun to depart, leaving the area around the building deserted. Bonnie and Jed started heading back to their car.

"See you later," C.J. said as Matt walked up to her.

She turned around to face him, her brow raised.

"Where've you been?"

"Just talking to some folks," he said.

"So was I, earlier."

"So I heard."

"What did you say to Nick," she asked.

Matt picked up the tone of reproach in her voice on top of a layer of fear.

"We cleared the air so to speak. Actually I told him how things were going to be from now on."

She ran her hand through her hair.

"Don't worry about him, Houston," she said, "His job is to try to stop us from going forward on this injunction."

"He's not going to stop at anything to do that," he said, "This has become a high-stakes game."

"I know that," she said, "But we're going to win it."

He sighed, seeing the determination in her eyes. Part of what he admired about her, but it often put her in danger. She saw his concern and reached for his hand.

"Let's not talk about this anymore," she said, "You owe me dinner."

He smiled.

"Yes I do," he said, "Come on, let's go."

* * *

Later, they were driving down a road with takeout dinner from the diner in between them. He turned off the road and parked the car in a small dirt lot.

"The scenery's supposed to be great here," he said, "Perfect for watching the sun set."

She got out of the car and looked around her at the canopy of trees which surrounded the lot.

"It's beautiful," she said as they began walking down a trail which led to a rocky ledge near a cluster of trees which overlooked the valley painted in various shades of green and brown, with a blue ribbon weaving its way through towards the horizon.

"Wow," she said, sitting down.

"Wow is right," he said, joining her.

She opened the bags and began unpacking the fried chicken and mashed potatoes. She tossed him some beer and took one for herself. They served themselves, piling their plates with food.

"I'm so hungry," she said, picking up a chicken breast, "It's so nice to finally be able to sit back and relax knowing three weeks of hard work is sitting in a lawyer's office in Denver."

He studied her, noting the mixture of joy and weariness in her brown eyes. Her lips twitched as she caught him looking at her.

"Hey, I'm just so glad to not be attached to the damn computer," she said.

"I'm just glad to be here," Matt said, "And not in L.A. not sitting in a car being able to tell one stakeout apart from the next."

"Is that what's been going on with you," she asked, "You're feeling burned out?"

He leaned back against the tree.

"Maybe," he said, "I love working but the cases do start looking like the same and I think Brody's an ace investigator but I miss the days when we first started the business."

C.J. smiled, taking a sip of her beer.

"I do too," she said, "It was a lot of fun, and never a dull moment. Being shot at wasn't as fun, but solving cases made it worthwhile."

"The pneumonia made me think about what I really wanted," Matt said, "And I think the strain I'm feeling now is coming from not going ahead and pursuing that."

She studied him.

"What would you want to change?"

He looked out across the valley, gathering comfort from the beautiful quiet broken only by the sounds of birds, surrounding them.

"I want to take more cases from people who have nowhere else to turn," he said, "I want to go home at the end of the day feeling I've made a difference in the world."

"Why don't you," she said, "if that's what you really want to do."

Houston nodded thoughtfully.

"You're right," he said, "but then you usually are when it comes to things like this."

She shrugged.

"Life is short, Houston," she said, "You should do what makes your heart content and happy. That's all I'm trying to do."

"C.J..."

"I'm not trying to keep you at a distance, Houston," she said, "Everything's just so different now. I'm different. I'm just trying to find myself again."

"I know that," he said, "But you're a very important part of my life."

He hesitated.

"And there's something else…"

She looked up at him, expectedly waiting to hear what he had to say.


	23. Chapter 23

Chapter 23--- Here's the latest chapter in this story. I hope you enjoy it and thanks for reading and commenting!

* * *

"What is it," C.J. asked.

He gazed at her thoughtfully.

"I'm thinking about leaving L.A."

She turned around and looked at him.

"What?"

"I've been thinking about it for a while now," he said, "about turning over the agency to Brody and Greg."

She reacted to his news.

"You can't do that," she said, "That agency is your dream. You built it from the ground up."

"We built it from the ground up," he corrected, "Maybe it's time for a new dream."

"You don't have to make any decisions now," she said.

"I know that I don't but I'm thinking about it," he said.

C.J. grew quiet.

"That's a pretty big step."

"I know but so is what's happening between us."

C.J. nodded.

"I know that," she said, "I just don't know what to do with it."

"I do."

She looked at him quizzically.

"Come here," he said and she did as he wrapped his arms around her.

"I guess we can't break anything here," she mused.

"If the woman at City Hall calls us about the table, I'll pay the bill."

She shook her head.

"We'll split it."

He nodded.

"After all, I'm just as culpable for that mishap as you were."

He raised a brow.

"Mishap," he said, "I was having a great time until things came crashing down."

She looked out at the horizon, where the sun turned the sky around it pink.

"Me too," she said, "But we were lucky the table broke before Sydney and the photographer came in."

Matt chuckled.

"We could have made an interesting picture on the front page news."

"I can only imagine what the caption would have been," C.J. said.

"I can think of a couple."

She snuggled into his chest.

"There's nowhere I'd rather be," she said, "I just hope it's enough."

He stroked her hair.

"What do you mean?"

She swallowed, slowly.

"I'm just trying to find my way," she said, lifting her head up and looking at him, "It's not really like me to feel this way."

"Uncomfortable?"

She shook her head.

"Turned off?"

She smiled as she shook her head.

"A bit nervous, maybe?"

She didn't respond.

"There's nothing wrong with that."

She took a deep breath.

"I just don't know when it's going to happen," she said.

He furrowed his brow, then nodded.

"Like what happened at my beach house that night?"

She nodded.

"I survived that experience," he said, "not that I couldn't have handled it better."

"I feel good one minute then the next…"

"We've had some pretty…interesting experiences so far and we've made it through," he said, "though I can't speak for the furniture."

She laughed.

"That's true," she said.

"I've had a great time," he said, "Haven't you?"

She looked at him and smiled, warmly.

"Most definitely."

He kissed her on the lips. She responded to him and put her arms around him, careful not to send them both crashing off the ridge.

"I'm looking forward to see what's next," he said, kissing the area by her earlobe, "Aren't you?"

She tilted her head. Damn, his lips felt good on her skin, making her skin goose pimple.

"Yeah, I am," she said, "I most definitely am."

He looked at her.

"Are you cold?"

She shook her head and then she showed him by kissing him back, as the moon shone down upon them.

* * *

Butterfly looked up from her laptop as the door opened and she saw Matt and C.J. walk into the living room.

"I was beginning to give up on you," she said, "Look at the time."

C.J. looked at the clock, which read five before midnight.

"Thank you for staying up for us," she said.

Butterfly shrugged.

"I got a couple of scenes written in my vampire screenplay."

C.J. narrowed her eyes.

"What happened to your zombies?"

Butterfly rolled her eyes.

"I had to give them a rest for a while," she said, "And try something new."

"Fair enough," C.J. said, "You work very hard at your writing."

Butterfly shrugged.

"Well yeah, it's my thing," she said, "And it's not like I can spend my time hanging out with guys."

"Butterfly…"

"I know," she said, "I'll get to do all that when I'm an old lady."

C.J. smiled.

"How did your dinner go with Carter and Reed?"

"I think Reed's getting tired of hanging around us," Butterfly said, "And Carter's been acting strange since we lip locked in the barn."

"Ah…"

"Yeah, he's acting like I attacked him or something," Butterfly said, "Why are guys like that?"

C.J. started to stay something.

"I mean, Carter's cute and he said I was pretty but now he's acting like he's…"

"Maybe he's a bit nervous about how to proceed."

Butterfly snorted.

"He's a guy," she said, "All guys want to do is…"

"Butterfly, that's not true," C.J. said, "That's a stereotype about them that's not always based on fact."

"What do you mean?"

"Guys can be shy and less than sure of themselves too. They can be interested in women as human beings," C.J. said, "There's no rule against that."

Butterfly looked at Matt.

"Are you ever like that?"

Matt looked at C.J.

"I wasn't always but I grew into it," he said, "It makes for far more interesting relationships."

Butterfly nodded slowly.

"So you don't just go out with a girl because she's pretty hot?"

Matt cleared his throat.

"That helps of course," he said, "But it's not the most important thing to look for. You want a woman who's warm-hearted, has a sense of humor and cares about you. Those qualities matter a whole lot more than the outside packaging."

C.J. followed the discussion, hiding her smile.

"Did you ever find a girl like that," Butterfly asked.

"A few times," he admitted.

"Then why aren't you married, like Dan is to Aunt Chris?"

"You're asking a lot of questions."

Butterfly crossed her arms.

"If I don't ask any, how am I supposed to learn anything?"

C.J. weighed in.

"Good point, Butterfly."

"Butterfly, finding a woman with all that is only part of the equation," Matt said, "Other factors come into play."

"Like what?"

"Like does she like you as much as you like her," Matt said, "Is the timing right, because sometimes it's all about timing."

Butterfly frowned.

"That doesn't seem fair," she said, "to have found someone and then you have to wait forever for good timing."

"If you're with the right person," Matt said, "It definitely is worth the wait."

Butterfly looked at him and nodded with a bit of a shrug of her shoulders.

"That might work," she said, "As long as I don't have to wait forever."

She wandered off into the kitchen.

"Ah, the impatience of youth," Matt said, "I don't miss those days."

C.J. laughed.

"Me neither," she said.

"I meant what I said," Matt said, "All of it."

She nodded.

"I know you did," she said, "I appreciate that. I know I haven't made this easy."

"C.J., it's not supposed to be easy," he said, "but I'm holding out for the real thing."

C.J. turned her head towards the door.

"What is it," Matt said, following her gaze.

"I don't know," she said, "I thought I heard something."

Both of them watched the door.

"Maybe it's not…"

Suddenly something crashed through a window and landed at their feet. A Molotov cocktail, its wick sputtering had landed on the carpet, threatening to ignite it. Matt stamped his shoe on it and the flame went out. He ran to the window and made out the outline of a vehicle. A squeal of tires and an engine roaring and then it was quiet again.

"Doesn't sound like this person is going to have any future in pyrotechnics," C.J. said, looking at the vodka bottle.

He ran out the door and she followed him after grabbing the flashlight. They looked around in the darkness, illuminated only by the narrow beam cast by the flashlight. C.J. pointed towards the ground.

"More footprints," she said.

He nodded as he saw the large-sized boot prints imprinted in the mud near the bushes. He looked back at C.J.

"More footprints," he said, "How many more welcoming wagons have been here?"

C.J. shrugged.

"Only one," she said, "Butterfly heard him but he was gone before I could get outside. That was the night before the car accident."

Then she had a thought.

"Maybe he fiddled with my car and that's why it wouldn't start that night."

Matt scratched his head.

"Maybe," he said.

"Hey what's going on?"

Both of them turned to see Butterfly standing in the doorway watching them.

"Go inside, Butterfly," C.J. said, "It's okay."

"It's not okay," she said, "Someone just threw a bomb in the window."

C.J. went up and put an arm around the frightened girl.

"Listen, maybe after tonight, you should go stay in the ranch house with Thea."

Butterfly snorted despite her fear.

"Hell no," she said, "I'm not afraid of anyone."

C.J. sighed.

"That makes one of us," she said quietly.

Matt looked at her.

"I'm not going to let anyone harm either of you."

"Well, at least we know they're still desperate," she said, "I guess from a legal standpoint in this fight, that's good news."

"Are you going to be okay," Matt asked.

She laughed.

"It's not being my first Molotov cocktail," she said, "and it's probably not my last."

"True," he said, looking at the label on the bottle, "But at least they didn't waste good liquor."

"Should we bother to report it to the friendly town sheriff," C.J. said.

"He's made it clear that he has a rather skewed view of the crimes being committed in this town."

C.J. nodded.

"That's for sure," she said.

* * *

The next morning, Jed came by the cabin to look at the broken window.

"We can patch it up," he said, "And order some new glass to replace it."

"Thanks Jed," C.J. said, "We'll be ready to leave in about an half hour."

He nodded and walked to get some tools out of his car to patch it up.

"I heard Matt's got an interview later this afternoon with that reporter," he said when he returned.

Matt grimaced.

"Don't remind me," he said, "I'm not sure I'm ready for this."

C.J. smiled.

"You handled _PEOPLE_, you can handle Sydney."

"I'm a bit worried that 'handling' is what she has in mind," he said.

C.J. rolled her eyes.

"Well, if it gets to be too much for you," she said, "just send a text and we'll come to your rescue."

"I might just do that," he said.

Butterfly wandered in chewing on some toast.

"So Jed's going to fix that," she said pointing at the broken window.

"Yeah, at least patch it up for now so the cold air can't get in," C.J. said, "It might take a day or so to get some new glass."

"Did you tell him it wasn't our fault?"

C.J. nodded.

"He knows," she said.

Butterfly looked troubled.

"Why do people want to hurt us?"

C.J. softened.

"They don't want to hurt you," she said, "Some people are just mad at me for continuing on with this case."

"That's against the law isn't it if they break a window with a bomb?"

"Well yes," C.J. said, "But the law doesn't exactly work out here the way that it's supposed to."

Butterfly frowned.

"That bites," she said, "So what are we going to do?"

"Keep doing what we can do to win this case for the ranchers, " she said, "But we're going to take precautions to keep everyone safe."

Butterfly shrugged.

"I'm cool," she said, "But is Matt going to be all right?"

C.J. narrowed her eyes.

"What do you mean?"

"When he goes to meet with that lady reporter…Sydney?"

C.J. suppressed a grin.

"I think so," she said, "I think he'll be just fine."

"I think he's walking into a trap," Butterfly said, "I don't trust her."

"Now Butterfly, Sydney's really very nice," C.J. said, "We haven't given her a real chance."

Butterfly snorted.

"I think this whole news story thing is bogus," she said, "She's just after Matt."

The girl didn't miss much, C.J. thought.

"Maybe," she said, "But that's something Houston's used to dealing with so he'll know how to take care of himself if the need arises."

Butterfly grumbled as she sat at her laptop, retreating away from the world around her and back to that involving vampires and zombies which made more sense.

* * *

Matt and C.J. spent the morning with Jed and Reed riding out and checking in with the ranchers who guarded the old Wyatt place. The area had been quite for a while, the men said. C.J. asked them to be sure and watch their backs given that the opposition had declared open season on Molotov cocktails. One of the ranchers had widened his eyes at the news but the other two simply shrugged. If anyone tried that tactic on them, they'd be ready.

Several hours later, Matt drove into Silver Lode for his meeting with Sydney and her photographer, Joseph. C.J. told him that she and Butterfly would be dropping by to pick up some films. Since Matt and she would be leaving for Denver the next morning, Butterfly would be spending the day and night with Thea, having another one of their movie marathon parties. Butterfly hadn't decided on a theme yet but wavered between directors Martin Scorsese and George Romero.

"What about some nice films with happy endings," C.J. had asked.

Butterfly grimaced.

"Chick flicks are so passé," she said, "So retro."

C.J. sighed, believing that a good old fashioned romance movie where the girl got the guy never went out of style. When had the world shifted so irrevocably, she asked.

* * *

Matt smiled as he remembered that conversation during the drive. He looked forward to spending some time alone with C.J. after they returned from Denver and Butterfly was at Thea's. He'd spent the morning's ride through the ranch thinking about it. He hoped that she looked forward to that too but she had remained noncommittal despite the news that they would have the cabin to themselves.

He turned into the parking place at the diner and saw Sydney's car so he figured she already must be waiting inside for him. He sighed as he left the car, looking around for a quick getaway. He found Sydney talking to Joseph just inside the entrance. She looked up and saw him, walking over.

"You're punctual," she said.

"I always try to be," he said.

She took him by the arm.

"Let's start by doing a short Q&A inside, shall we?"

They walked inside and sat in a corner booth. The waitress took their order and returned with two ice-teas. Sydney opened a packet of sugar and stirred it into her glass, looking at him.

"So what do you want to ask," Matt said, "now that you got me out here."

She blinked.

"Oh, just some basic questions that our readers might want to know about one of America's most sexiest, richest and most eligible bachelors."

"Are those ranked in the order of importance?"

She looked at him, then chuckled.

"Oh no…no," she said, "They're things that some of our audience might care about but purely from the level of curiosity. You don't mind talking about them, do you?"

He took a sip of his ice tea.

"No, I don't," he said, "Which should we start with?"

"Uh…whatever one you'd like," she said.

He clasped his hands and put them on the table. A waitress brought him a bacon burger and wedge fries and Sydney a Chef's salad.

"Let's see, I've been told that I'm sexy as hell just in the last 24 hours by a good judge of character, though I don't buy into the hype that surrounds it. I've got more money than I know what to do with but I don't let it run my life…"

"But you're a multi-millionaire," Sydney said, "Surely that impacts your life in a positive way."

Matt sighed, then took a bite of his burger.

"Money brings good things yes, but it brings complications too."

"Only those who have it say that."

"Maybe some of them," Matt said, "But you spend a lot of your life wondering if people who are nice to you, who want to do things for you, really like you as a person or just the size of your wallet."

Sydney thought about that.

"I guess that could cause some problems meeting women," she said.

He nodded.

"It does sometimes," he said, "But I've been lucky to meet women in my life who don't care about the money."

"Are you in a relationship with one of those women now," she said.

He laughed.

"Boy you cut to the chase, don't you?"

She smiled and shrugged.

"Call it an occupational hazard," she said.

"Yes I am," he said, "And very happily so."

Her face fell but she tried to smile over it.

"Oh," she said, "Somehow I got the feeling that you were…"

"Available," he said, "Is the fact that I'm not going to cause a problem with your article?"

She shook her head, hastily.

"Oh no, no," she said, "Not at all."

"Okay, then what's the next question?"

Sydney picked at her salad.

"Anyone I know?"

"I'd rather not say."

"Fair enough," she said but she looked at him and wondered.

* * *

C.J. and Butterfly parked at the video store and the younger girl ran off to pick out her selections. Bonnie sat outside of her store and C.J. walked up to her.

"How are things going at the cabin?"

"Jed patched it up," C.J. said, "But this was scary because Butterfly is with us."

"Hey, if you need someone to look after her, Jed and I will be more than happy to do it."

C.J. shook her head.

"For now, I think she's fine," she said, "Houston and I will be flying up to Denver tomorrow and she'll be staying at Thea's until the following morning."

Bonnie nodded.

"That gives the two of you a chance to spend some quality time alone."

C.J. looked at her suddenly.

"I guess it does," she said.

"Hmmm, is that a problem?"

"No, no…" C.J. said, sitting down beside Bonnie.

"Is it a good thing?"

C.J. thought about it and nodded.

"I think so," she said, "I don't want to spend time with anyone else if that's what you mean."

Bonnie tilted her head.

"I always guessed that you two cared for each other more than you're willing to admit or show," she said.

"It's just so complicated with everything that's happened," she said, "We've known each other forever but this is so different. It's…"

"Scary?"

C.J. paused.

"Not so much that," she said, "I just don't want to mess things up with my best friend."

"What makes you think that's going to happen?"

"It's been a bumpy road already," C.J. said, "And I haven't meant it to be."

Bonnie snorted.

"You want to talk about bumpy roads," she said, "That's me and Jed. Remember what it was like when you first came here?"

C.J. smiled.

"Yeah you thought he was scared to death of you or afraid to get close to any woman after his wife's murder," she said, "And the whole time he really cared about you."

Bonnie nodded.

"You see, it all worked out despite the obstacles we put in our own way."

C.J. ran her hand through her hair.

"Yes it did," she said, "I've tried so hard to be the woman I used to be and I just can't do it."

"You don't have to be her," Bonnie said, "Just be who you are now. That's the woman that Matt wants to be with, that I can tell."

"He's been really great about all this," C.J said, "Really patient."

Bonnie smiled at her friend's uncertainty.

"He's just been a man who cares very deeply for a woman. That's all," she said, "One thing about him is that he wears his heart on his sleeve and he knows what he wants."

* * *

Matt watched as Sydney jotted on her notepad the answers to the questions she had asked him during their lunch interview. They hadn't been tough questions, nothing more of a stretch to answer than had been asked by _PEOPLE_.

She stood up after pushing her salad back, most of it uneaten. Matt loved women with strong appetites who weren't afraid to look at a plate of food and eat it with gusto. Such passion for good cuisine translated to other things, he found. He looked at his watch.

"So what's next," he asked.

"We're going to go outside and have Joseph take some photos," she said.

They went outside and walked towards City Hall.

"Why here," Matt said, looking around.

"It will present the portrait of you as the man who's willing to take on the local establishment."

He frowned.

"You know C.J.'s doing all that work," he said, "Why don't you talk with her about it?"

Sydney grimaced.

"I have a quote from her about you being sexy as all get out," she said, "I think that works better for the tone of the piece."

He shrugged.

"Okay, City Hall it is," he said.

Joseph directed him to stand front and center on the steps. Matt did and the photographer snapped a few shots.

Sydney watched, her face etched in concentration.

"Okay, now take off the shirt."

Matt looked up, eyes widening.

"What," he asked.

She gestured to him.

"Take off the shirt," she said, "And show us those pecs."

He walked down the steps towards her.

"I'm leaving my shirt on," he said.

She crossed her arms.

"Why," she said, "Somehow you don't strike me as the shy type."

"I'm not," he said, "But it's still not coming off."

She changed her tactics.

"But you're so hot looking I can tell and this will help sell that image," she said.

He sighed.

"You're a very attractive woman and when you're not being pushy, you can be nice," he started.

"Oooh I hear a 'but' coming," Sydney said.

"Then you've heard correctly," he said, "_but_ you're not the woman who's going to get me to take it off."

* * *

She nodded.

"Okay, that's fine," she said, "Let's go find this lucky woman then. Do you need to call her for permission?"

Matt remained silent.

"Or is she closer than a phone call away," Sydney surmised.

Matt set his jaw.

"How did that table really break in the records room the other day," she said, "I mean you were in there with the woman working for you."

"It fell," he said,"and actually I'm working for her."

"Oh really," she said, "That's a likely story."

"Which part, the fact that the table fell or that I work for her?"

"We'll start with the table," Sydney said.

"What does it matter," he said, "I thought you were interested in doing a feature story."

Joseph looked at his watch.

"Are we going to get the photos taken or not," he asked.

Sydney pursed her lips.

"I don't know about that," she said, "The editor wanted more skin than our subject is willing to show."

"Excuse me, I have a name," he said, "and it's Matt."

She waved him away while conferring with Joseph. Matt looked up and saw C.J. and Bonnie walking towards him. Sydney looked up and saw C.J. too.

C.J. looked at the both of them, puzzled.

"What's up?"

Matt looked over at Sydney.

"The photo session is over."

Sydney folded her arms.

"He refuses to take off his shirt."

C.J. looked confused.

"Why would he be taking off his shirt," she said, "I thought this article was for the Sunday edition."

"Our readers want to get a real sense of the kind of man that Matt is, and why he's considered among the sexiest men in this country."

C.J. laughed.

"The answer has nothing to do with his Pecs although they are quite impressive," she said, "It has to do with how he makes any woman he spends time with feel like she's the most special on the planet."

Sydney listened.

"It's how he's warm, he's funny and he'll move heaven and earth to make sure she never forgets how much he cares about her."

"That works," Sydney said, "That can be our angle, Joseph. That he's as sexy or sexier on the inside as the outside."

"There you have it," C.J. said, "Houston, Butterfly and I are going to head back to the ranch."

He looked at her and his smile made her heart simmer.

"You're quite an item, Ms Parsons."

She winked at him.

"I'm a lawyer, Houston," she said, "We love to engage in fancy talk."

He watched her walk off, falling just a little bit more in love with her.


	24. Chapter 24

Chapter 24--I'm done with another chapter. I hope you enjoy it and thanks for the comments!

* * *

C.J. stood in the kitchen making stew after returning from Silver Lode. Butterfly gravitated back to her laptop and slipped on her iPod, once again disappearing into the world of her imaginary creations. C.J. had watched her work with bemusement for a few minutes then had began cutting up potatoes, celery and carrots for her stew.

Matt and she had to get up early tomorrow to get to the airport to fly to Denver. The court hearing was scheduled late in the morning and would probably last until at least mid-afternoon. Then after Matt had conducted his business in the state's capitol, they would start the trip back to the ranch. And wind up back at the cabin alone together. Her, with a man she had known most of her life and he, with a woman who had to get to know all over again.

She thought about Bonnie had said, and she had been right about accepting who she had become. Still, a part of her missed how she used to embrace her relationships with men. Whether they were great guys like Carl, or bad choices like Robert, she still enjoyed the confidence she brought into each one and the exhilaration and mystery of connecting with another person. Confidence which she had struggled to regain but that still eluded her no matter what she tried. She knew that anything was better than feeling she had lost that part of herself, even a broken heart. Still, she didn't want to hurt the man who mattered to her more than any other. She chewed on her lip while stirring her vegetables into the beef stock, trying to sort her feelings out.

The cabin door opened. Butterfly looked up.

"Oh hi," she said, before returning to her writing.

Matt walked into the kitchen.

"Smells good in here," he said, looking at the stove.

"My domestic skills are somewhat limited," she said, "But somewhere along the line, I learned how to make a decent beef stew."

"The potatoes smell great," he said, lifting the lid.

She smiled.

"Thea had some left over," she said, "So how did the photo session go?"

He shrugged.

"It went," he said, "Sydney actually liked your idea once she thought about it. So did I."

"I didn't mean to imply that you weren't good looking," she said.

He embraced her from behind.

"I know that," he said, kissing the back of her neck.

She leaned back into him and he rubbed her shoulders.

"Just that it's not the only thing about you," she said, "or the most important thing."

She knew he smiled even though she couldn't see it.

"I think Sydney got the picture," he said, "thank you."

She turned around to face him.

"For what," she said, "All I did was tell the truth."

"For this," he said, and then he kissed her.

* * *

"This isn't bad," Butterfly said, taking a bite of the stew.

"Thank you," C.J. said, "Some of Thea's great cooking skill rubbed off on me."

Butterfly looked at her plate for a minute.

"So you're ready to leave tomorrow?"

"Yeah, I'm ready," C.J. said, "I got most of the work done yesterday so it's just a matter of showing up for oral arguments."

Butterfly nodded, satisfied.

"Carter asked me to go fishing with him tomorrow," she said.

"I guess he's gotten over his shyness?"

"He wasn't shy," she said, "He was just worried about Bella."

C.J. looked at Butterfly.

"Bella?"

"Oh she's his prize heifer," Butterfly said, "He's entering her in some county fair at the end of the summer and she had a cough."

"That's not good," Matt said.

"But she's better now so he's got more time to spend with me," Butterfly said.

C.J. cleared her throat.

"Oh that's…interesting."

"So can I go fishing with him?"

C.J. looked at Matt who hid his smile.

"Will Reed be going with you?"

Butterfly shook her head.

"No, he has to go to town to pick up some feed."

"We'll have to think about this a bit," C.J. said.

Butterfly opened her mouth to protest.

"What kind of trouble could I possibly get into going fishing?"

Matt started to say something until C.J. threw him a warning look.

"Don't start," C.J. said.

Butterfly looked at both of them.

"Why do I have a feeling that this has more to do with something you screwed up than with me?"

C.J. smiled.

"It has nothing to do with our somewhat ill-fated fishing trip," she said, "And everything to do with what I promised Chris."

Butterfly rolled her eyes.

"We're not going to do anything besides catch fish," she said, "I'm not out to ruin my life by doing something stupid like getting pregnant."

She caught both Matt and C.J.'s attention.

"That's not what I'm concerned about, Butterfly," C.J. said.

"Then what's the problem," Butterfly said, dropping her fork, "You just think I'm not smart enough to decide what to do when I'm with a guy because of Spike.

C.J. shook her head.

"It has nothing to do with you going with Carter or any other guy," she said, "I like Carter. I think he's mature for his age and he's not going to do anything to hurt you."

"Then why are you being so unfair?"

C.J. sighed, looking at Matt.

"It has to do with making sure that none of us go anywhere alone because there's some really determined men out there who've tried to harm those they feel are stopping them from doing what they want. I don't want anything to happen to you or Carter."

Butterfly softened.

"We'll be careful," she said, "And Carter has a cell phone so that if anything happens, he can call for help."

Matt looked at C.J.

"That sounds like a plan," he said.

C.J. gave it some thought. She tried to keep her fears at bay but it proved difficult. Butterfly watched her face, biting her lip.

Finally C.J. nodded.

"Okay, you can go," she said, "Only if Carter brings his cell phone and he calls Reed or Jed every hour on the hours."

Butterfly jumped out of her seat.

"Thank you," she said, running back to her computer.

C.J. looked at Matt.

"I'm never having kids," she said, "Then again that's what Chris used to say and look at her now."

"Butterfly's a great kid," Matt said.

"But that's just it," C.J. said, "I still see her as that kid who we rescued from the pimp who killed her sister and she's growing up."

"She still needs people who care about her to look out for her."

"I know that," C.J. said, "But she's pretty stubborn sometimes and doesn't like to be challenged when it comes to something she wants."

Matt smiled.

"That sure sounds familiar," he said, "And don't tell me you're not going to have kids, because you've always said you want them."

C.J. relented.

"You're right," she said, "I just am realizing that in these past few weeks with Butterfly, that it's difficult, it's fraught with peril and you can do all the 'right' things for the 'right' reasons and things can still go wrong."

"They can go right too," Matt said, "And they will with Butterfly just as they will with...your kids."

She looked at him.

"I hope you're right."

"I know I am."

* * *

Later, they stood in the hallway.

"Are you packed," he said.

"I still got some stuff to throw in," she said, "in case we have to stay over for some reason. I always believe in being prepared for anything."

"I'll pack just in case," he said.

"I think we should be done tomorrow," she said, "and get at least a tentative ruling from the judge."

"That'd be good," he said.

She nodded.

"That'd be great," she said, "if it goes our way."

He noticed the worried look in her eyes.

"It will," he said, "You worked very hard on this. You all did."

"I just hope that it's enough," she said, "especially considering the cost."

"You need to get a good night sleep before we leave for your big day tomorrow."

She nodded.

"You're right," she said, "I feel like I'm ready but a bit nervous. It's always like this before an important event."

He stroked her cheek.

"You don't have any reason to be nervous," he said, "You're going to do just fine. Just follow your heart and speak from there."

She looked at him and slowly nodded as they went their separate ways.

* * *

They left for the airport earlier that morning after a quick breakfast with Butterfly who was excited about her fishing trip. C.J. still had her reservations about letting her go with him alone but knew she had made the right decision.

"It's going to be awesome," Butterfly had said, before rushing up to the loft to change.

Matt looked at C.J.

"I know that wasn't easy," he said, "But you made the right decision."

"I hope you're right," she said, "But despite what we witnessed the other day, I really do like Carter."

"He's a good young man," Matt said, "and what harm can come from fishing?"

She smiled.

"I can think of a few things, based on someone I know pretty well."

" That was an accident," he said.

"So was when you fell in the lake and joined me."

"We should do some when we get back," he said, "I haven't done any in a while."

She looked at her watch.

"We'd better get going," she said, picking up her luggage.

Butterfly came back down from her loft, in jeans and a tee-shirt, reading "Zombie Prom Queens rule". C.J. shook her head, smiling.

"What, too edgy for a fishing trip?"

"No, no…," C.J. said, "It's…very original."

Butterfly looked serious.

" Now I know that you're concerned about me and Carter on account that I kissed him in the barn but there's nothing to worry about,"

"Damn straight," C.J. said, "Reed will kick his butt if he finds out that he did anything he shouldn't."

"Don't you trust me," Butterfly said.

"Yes I do…and I trust Carter but it's my role to worry anyway because Chris isn't here to do it," she said, "And you'll have a great time with Thea tonight."

"Yeah Bonnie might stop by. She's going to tell me all about her matchmaking gig," Butterfly said, "I got to see how that works."

"She's really good at it," C.J. said, "Her next success story's heading to the altar by Christmas."

"So you're coming back tonight or staying longer," Butterfly said.

"We're not sure, it depends on how things go," C.J. said, "But I'll call you."

Matt came in carrying some luggage.

"Ready to head out?"

C.J. nodded and hugged Butterfly.

"Be good and help Bonnie if she needs it."

"I will," Butterfly said, and then hugged Matt goodbye.

"Have a good time," he said, "And no loud parties."

Butterfly rolled her eyes.

* * *

C.J. and Matt drove to the airport where Matt's plane remained parked where he had left it. She powered up her laptop to do some last minute work while he prepped the plane for the trip. After reading and rereading her documents and footnotes, she decided that it looked fine the way it was and closed her computer.

Matt stuck his head in the office inside the hanger.

"We're ready to go," he said.

Minutes later, the plane flew through the Rockies, which were arranged below them. The sight of the snow-capped peaks never ceased to take her breath away. The sky remained clear for miles in every direction and turbulence burbled and nudged but didn't banter the plane about much.

"What's our ETA?"

He looked over at where she sat next to him.

"About an hour."

They kept flying and C.J. used the time to try to work on her oral presentation.

"You practicing your speech," he said.

"Yeah, I have a small part in this production but I want to nail my lines right."

"You usually do," he said, "Why would today be any different? You've been in federal court before."

"I spend most of my time there now," she said, "But this case means a lot to me. Partly because of the high price we've paid so far."

"So how long will court take?"

"Most of the time will be spent waiting," she said, "The actual hearing should take about an hour or two."

"I've got to meet with a contact in the FBI," he said.

"I don't trust them," she said.

"He's a friend," Matt said, "I sent him some of the samples from the car a while back."

"Do you think…"

Suddenly, the plane dipped sharply. C.J. looked at Matt.

"What was that," she said.

"I don't know," he said, "Turbulence maybe. It's very common in the Rockies."

The plane dipped again, further. Matt pulled on the yoke. A strange sound filled the cabin.

"It might be the rudder," he said, "or one of the stabilizers."

"Is it stuck or something," she said, as the plane kept bobbling from side to side like it sailed in rough seas.

"I just replaced the right aileron last month."

"Are we close to Denver?"

"Just outside of it," he said, adjusting a control on the instrument panel.

Nothing that he did changed the pitch of the aircraft which worsened with each passing second.

"We're going to have to call Denver and tell them we're coming in for an emergency landing."

"I'll do it," C.J. said, picking up the radio to contact the traffic controller, "What's our current position?"

He looked on the panel and then gave it to her. She got on the radio to talk to air traffic then relayed the instructions back to Matt who struggled to control his aircraft.

Matt tried to reduce altitude as they approached the airport but the plane fought him every step of the way.

"It must be locked," he said, "Nothing will bring it back."

"Maybe you should try offsetting it with the other one if it's still working," C.J. said, then got back on the radio.

The plane started to yaw.

He tried and that helped level it somewhat but they still had to land the uncooperative jet quickly before it landed for them in the mountains or worse, crashed through the roof of one of the buildings on the flight path thousands of feet below. The plane dropped altitude and first the houses, then the cars and finally the people got larger.

C.J. got off the radio and gave him more instructions for landing at the airport which suddenly loomed below them. Matt straightened the aircraft as much as he could and said a silent prayer. He looked over at C.J. who sat there calmly and their eyes met in those final seconds before he had to focus his attention on the wheels hitting the runway, which quickly approached.

"It's going to be just fine," he said.

She smiled, despite her fear.

"I know. I trust you."

* * *

As it turned out, the plane landed safely with its wings in a straight line on the runaway and Matt slowed it gradually until it came to a stop. Ahead, they saw that emergency personnel trucks awaited them. Matt got on the radio to notify the traffic controllers that they had landed safely. C.J. closed her eyes and relaxed in her seat.

"Can we taxi in," C.J. asked.

Matt flipped some more controls.

"I think so," he said. "Damn aileron, I just replaced it."

A sudden chill hit C.J. She looked over at Matt realizing he had the same thought.

"Maybe this wasn't an accident," she said.

"I'll have a mechanic check it over," he said, "I'll check it over myself. It's a brand new part and unless it's defective, it should work fine."

They parked the plane at a hanger reserved for smaller private jets.

"How much time do you have," he asked, as he prepared to leave the plane and she got her things together.

She smiled.

"Don't worry, I have enough time," she said, "Thanks for flying me here…safely.

"I…"

She impulsively embraced him tightly, placing her arms around him. He looked startled at first but then responded by pulling her closer to him. She raised her head and then kissed him, sliding her hands beneath his shirt. He stroked her hair.

She broke away.

"What was that about," he said.

"I kissed you because I didn't think a few minutes ago I'd ever be able to do so again."

"I'm not complaining," he said, "Oh boy, I'm not complaining."

She smiled up at him and played with the buttons on his shirt.

"I want to spend the night with you," she said.

He pushed her away and held her at arm's length.

"We are spending the night together…somewhere. It might be here if the plane's not fixed."

She looked at him again, smiling at the mixture of confusion and hope in his eyes.

"No, I want to spend the night with you."

He scratched his head as what she meant dawned on him.

"Is this because we nearly smashed into the face of a mountain back there?"

She cocked her head at him.

"No, I made this decision before we left the cabin this morning."

He crossed his arms, hiding a smile.

"Really?"

She threw him an exasperated look, then smiled back.

"I think I can prove that this wasn't an impulsive decision but not in a public place without getting arrested."

"Okay," he said, "Are you sure about this?"

"About this, yes," she said, "How exactly we're going to spend it and where, no. I just know I can't wait to be alone with you."

He rubbed her arms.

"Okay," he said, "You go do what you have to do in court and I'll make sure the plane gets fixed and talk to my FBI contact and then we'll get back together…and take it from there."

She nodded.

"I'll go call one of the lawyers and see if I can hitch a ride with them."

He watched her leave, shaking his head.

* * *

C.J. shared a table with two other attorneys in a courtroom and waited for the presiding judge, a middle-aged woman with a stern look call on them to present their argument. Given that they were the petitioners for the action, they would go first. Beforehand, they had huddled and discussed their presentation.

The defense attorneys were seated at their table but their clients including Kilroy hadn't arrived yet. C.J. wondered if he would show any surprise just to see her there at the table when he entered the room. She suspected that he believed or hoped her remains were plastered on the side of a mountain somewhere in the Rockies.

"Where's Kilroy and his guys," an attorney named Susan said.

C.J. shrugged.

"He's got no excuse for not showing up on time," she said, "I flew in from Silver Lode, had engine trouble, survived an emergency landing, fixed my makeup and still made it here on time."

Suddenly, the judge turned her attention towards them and asked the defense attorneys why their clients were absent. They conferred among themselves then the lead attorney faced the judge.

"I expect them…"

Suddenly the door opened and they all turned around to see Kilroy and two other men enter the courtroom. They walked up to where their attorneys were and sat down at the table. The judge shot them a reproving look.

"I'm sorry your honor, we got stuck in traffic," Kilroy said, adjusting his tie.

She nodded.

"All right will the petitioners please present their case."


	25. Chapter 25

Chapter 25---This chapter's done. I hope you enjoy reading it and thanks for the feedback.

* * *

C.J. watched as the lead attorneys outlined their case before the judge, who betrayed no bias on her face as she listened. She mentally rehearsed her own part as she looked ahead until finally, the room grew quiet and she realized they were waiting for what came next. Suddenly, her mind wandered and she thought about spending the night with Matt and what it would be like. Her cheeks grew warm and flushed and she reached for her glass of water.

"Ms Parsons," the judge said, "Do you have anything to add?"

Did she ever!

She stood up, smoothed out her skirt and began talking about the ranchers who had submitted declarations for the injunction order and what it had meant to them to work the land and raise their families living off what the land gave them in return for generations. Each family growing up, maturing alongside the land which grazed their cattle and their horses, produced their crops and served as a playground for their children.

She closed out by saying that the tradition of working land and creating a dream to hand off to one's children and grandchildren had woven itself in the fabric of the nation's history since its founding hundreds of years ago.

When she finished speaking, she took a deep breath and looked at the judge who still, had a face which resembled the rocky face of a mountain for all the emotion and feeling it displayed. C.J. didn't know if she'd won or lost. She wouldn't know in this case until the judge heard all the arguments and rendered a decision.

But she realized she really did want part of that dream for herself. Even as she worked hard in her current career, she still wanted some open space of her own out in the wilderness to go home to at the end of the day. And she very much wanted someone to share that with who felt the same way she did.

She sat back with the other two attorneys and watched silently as Kilroy's attorneys stood up to present their counterargument to everything that had just been said about a way of life.

* * *

Matt had talked to the mechanic after checking the aileron which as he had suspected, had failed during the flight because it had cracked. The mechanic said he'd look into it and install a replacement part but that it might take a couple of days. Matt told him that was fine and to call him after he had repaired the jet.

He left his plane to go rent a car and meet with his FBI contact to find out if the guy would help them. The office wasn't located too far from the federal courthouse so he would meet C.J. there after he had finished his meeting. While walking, he thought about what C.J. had proposed to him. What he had agreed to without hesitation because he wanted it too. And he didn't know just how much until the moment she had asked.

"Matt, it's been a long time," a tall man said after entering the lobby.

"Five years since that case in Idaho," Matt said, "How are you doing?"

"I have a bigger office," Kent said, "Come this way."

Matt looked around the spacious room and had to admit it was quite a bit larger than the cubicle that Kent had occupied the last time they had worked together. Kent sat at his cluttered desk and gestured for Matt to sit down.

"So you're trying to find out if we're looking into any of the threats that were made against C.J. and the other attorneys in Silver Lode the past few weeks," Kent said.

"Two of the lawyers are currently hospitalized right here in Denver," Matt said, "C.J.'s here presenting her case in court despite also being injured in that same car accident."

"The one you don't believe is an accident."

"I sent your forensic lab some photos and paint samples taken from the crashed vehicle, which shows that they were struck from behind by another vehicle."

Kent nodded.

"We received it and are still running it through a battery of tests."

"Okay," Matt said, "So what else do you want to know?"

Kent took out a pad of paper and a pen.

"Do any of the three people have any memory of the crash or what led up to it?"

Matt sighed.

"Only C.J.," he said, "She says that she saw a bright light approaching from behind them and then felt something hit the car hard enough several times to push her forward against the seat in front of her."

"Would she be willing to talk to an agent about what happened?"

"I don't know," Matt said, "She's very leery of the FBI since what happened to her more than a year ago when she did some work for them."

Kent nodded.

"I heard about that," he said, "Those agents she worked with should have taken greater precautions than they did and they all received written reprimands in their files after being investigated."

"That's small consolation for what she went through because they didn't."

"I can talk with her," Kent said, "I'm going to the hospital later today to check on the conditions of the other two attorneys."

"I think C.J. plans to stop there after court is finished."

"Then maybe I'll see her there," Kent said.

* * *

Matt left Kent's office and went down to the courthouse, where he ran into C.J. and the other attorneys who happily told them the judge had issued a preliminary ruling in their favor. C.J. didn't seem upset at all when she learned that their night stuck in Denver had turned into an entire weekend. She smiled and she introduced him to the others. They shook his hand politely and thanked him for using his investigative skills to help them.

She grabbed Matt's hand.

"I think we'd better head to the hospital to pay a visit before we…"

"Begin our weekend?"

She narrowed her eyes.

"Where are we going?"

"Away from here," he said, smiling.

They walked out of the courthouse and while driving to the hospital, she told him how the court hearing had gone.

"Do you think you've won?"

She looked excited.

"It's looking good," she said, "The preliminary ruling favored us. The final decision should be delivered by Monday."

They parked in the garage and wandered through the halls until they were directed to the ward where Jason still lay recovering. Thankfully, he had made enough progress to leave the ICU unit but he still had a long rehabilitation ahead of him. They saw Maggie sitting in the lobby, reading a book. When she saw them, she stood up and embraced them.

"This must be Matt," Maggie said, "Nice to finally meet you."

"He's been a great help on the case," C.J. said, "How's Jason feeling?"

"He's been out of the ICU for a few days," Maggie said, "He's getting better but it's slow going."

"I'm sorry about…"

"Don't be," Maggie said, "It's not your fault. We're both happy that you prevailed for all of us in court today."

C.J. walked into the hospital room with Matt behind her. Jason lay in his bed, hooked up to an IV and a heart monitor. He looked a lot better than he had trapped inside the car the morning after the accident.

"You must be Matt," Jason said, "C.J. talked a lot about you."

"Likewise," Matt said, "She said you're a very good lawyer."

"Usually, when I'm not tangled up in a bunch of tubing," Jason said.

"How are you doing," C.J. asked.

"Not bad," Jason said, "I should be out in about a month."

She smiled.

"The judge ruled in our favor," she said.

"I know, I heard," Jason said, "Good job. I wish I could have been there too."

"You were in spirit," C.J. said, "We could never have done it without the hard work that Maggie and you put into the case."

"Maggie's been incredible," Jason said.

"I'm glad."

"You were right about her," he said, "About…us."

"Sometimes it takes a crisis for us to realize what's important in life," she said, "And who."

He looked at her.

"I know," he said, "So how long are you in town?"

"My plane busted an aileron so we're in for the weekend," Matt said.

"Do you have any place to stay?"

C.J. smiled.

"I hope so," she said, "You'd better ask him."

When they left Jason's room, they ran into Kent, the FBI agent. C.J. shook his hand politely but demurred on being interviewed.

"I remember what happened the last time I helped you guys," she said, "And I don't remember much, just the light and something pushing from behind."

Kent nodded but left her alone.

* * *

After they left the hospital, they headed out of Denver on the highway before turning onto a smaller road.

"Where are we going," she asked.

"You remember my dad's friend Bill?"

She nodded. Bill had helped them out a year ago when they had fled hit men and law enforcement and needed some place to hide.

"We're going to stay at one of his cabins."

C.J. laughed.

"We just left one this morning."

"I know, but I have a feeling we'll have more peace and quiet here than back at the ranch."

"Good point."

"Before we get there, we'll pick up some groceries at the store," Matt said.

"I'm there as long as we get some ice cream."

* * *

When they got to the store, C.J. looked at the selection and couldn't decide between Chocolate Mint and Marble Fudge so she took a container of both and then helped Matt pick out food, some good wine and other items.

"Take some steak," she said, at the meat section, "I'll get some salad fixings."

She wandered through the produce section and picked out some vegetables including lettuces, tomatoes and broccoli. She returned to the cart to find that Matt had filled it high with food. She raised a brow.

"How we're going to eat all that?"

He smiled.

"We'll find a way to burn it off," he said, "There's some great hiking in the nearby mountains including a beautiful waterfall."

"Good, we can go on a picnic," she said, "We could stay in for one as well."

Matt looked at the beautiful woman standing before him.

"Either one works for me," he said.

* * *

They got to Bill's and after they caught each other up on everything that had happened since they last crossed paths, he gave them the keys to their cabin. They got their groceries and luggage out of the car and unlocked the door. C.J. dropped what she carried and parked on the couch.

"You're pretty tired," Matt asked.

She shook her head, but she had closed her eyes.

"No, no," she said, "I just want to sit for a few minutes."

He looked at her.

"You're exhausted," he said, "Are you sure you're going to stay awake through dinner?"

She sat up straight.

"Of course, I promised you tonight," she said, struggling to keep her eyes open, "I'm totally up for it. What about you?"

"You're already here with me and that's enough," he said, "Now, let's go get some dinner. What would you like?"

He looked at her for an answer and she had fallen asleep.

* * *

Matt left her on the couch as he took the groceries in the kitchen to put them away and to start preparing dinner. He knew that all the exhaustion and stress that had accumulated during the past few weeks had caught up with her the moment the judge had issued the preliminary ruling in their favor. Not to mention the car accident, which she still had not fully recovered from. He prepared a simple chili dish and some tossed salad and carried it out to the living room.

She sat up watching him, after his entrance had wakened her.

"Did I fall asleep," she said, rubbing her eyes, "I'm so sorry."

"It's not much but it will fill you up," he said, handing her a plate of food and a glass of wine.

She smiled.

"Dinner smells very good," she said, "I guess I'm not a very fun date."

"I'm having a good time," he said, "I'm kicking back in the middle of the beautiful Rockies with a very beautiful woman."

"I don't know why I feel so tired," she said, sipping her wine, "It just hit me."

"Maybe because you've been nonstop for a while trying to get this case this far," he said, "But you need to take it easier now so that your body can catch up with all that drive."

"Are you sure you want that," she said, "The night's still young."

"Not for you," he said, "After we're done eating here, maybe you should get ready for bed."

"I'm wearing all I need underneath here," she said, yawning, "And I'm most definitely ready to start the weekend off in bed."

"That's the wine talking," he said, with a smile, "You're punch drunk."

She threw him an indignant look.

"I am not," she said, "I can show you…after a few minutes rest."

"Uh huh," he said, "I think it's going to take more than a few minutes."

* * *

C.J. lay in the bathtub, enjoying the lavender salts which relaxed her body. They also made her start to drift off to sleep. The exhausting schedule she had followed the last week or so finally caught up with her. She closed her eyes and tried to push out any thought related to the lawsuit or the legal profession and concentrate on how good the warm water felt.

She reached for her wine glass and took a sip, relishing the dryness of the liquor as it went down her throat. Dinner had been delicious, and she had been hungrier than she thought she would be even after a day inside a courthouse. The chocolate mint ice cream, of course had been a bonus. She thought about Matt and how patient he had been with her, always sensitive about her feelings. Still, she felt she had let him down by nearly falling asleep again during dessert. She had insisted that the night was still young and she wanted to enjoy the moment to see where it would take them but he had just smiled at her and told her that whatever they shared could wait until she had rested up from all the pressure she had been under since the accident. Even when she had invited him to join her in the tub, he had turned her down.

She had finally agreed. Okay, reluctantly because she knew she wanted him but she knew he was right. She knew she was ready to take their relationship to the next level and wanted to be able to stay awake to enjoy it and him.

She got out of the bath and changed into a nightshirt. She walked into the living room with her wine glass. He sat on the couch looking up at her from his magazine, dressed in sweats.

"So how do you feel?"

"The bath was lovely and very much needed," she said, putting her wine glass down and sitting next to him, "And you're right, I am very tired."

"This has nothing to do with not wanting you or wanting to be with you," he said, "Because that bath offer was very difficult to turn down."

She shrugged, her nightshirt falling off of her shoulder. Matt averted his eyes away from her tanned skin.

"It's okay," she said, "You're right. I need the rest."

He smiled.

"The next time you make that offer, I won't be turning you down."

She nodded her face flushing.

"So I guess we'll have to wait to light the night on fire as they say?"

He chuckled.

"C.J., there's no pressure. You came here to relax after a job well done."

"Well, that might be true," she said, "But I didn't come here to relax by myself."

"True."

"I know I'll probably fall asleep as soon as my head hits the pillow," she said, "But I'd love it if you'd join me."

He put down the magazine.

"Are you sure?"

She took his hand.

"Yeah," she said, and they both got off the couch and headed to her bedroom. She put her arms around him and pulled him in for a kiss. He stroked her back and when they broke apart to regain their bearings, she pulled down the spread on the bed and slipped beneath the covers. He joined her and wrapped his arms around her so their bodies fit together. The warmth of him surrounded her like a blanket and she snuggled against him.

"Mmmm," she said, closing her eyes, "Are you sure…"

He closed his eyes and kissed the back of her neck.

"Good night," he said.

* * *

She tossed and turned, mumbling something in her sleep. Her restlessness woke up Matt. Listening to her, he thought she might be arguing some case in court. He touched her gently and she raised her head.

"Objection," she said.

"Sustained, the judge rules in your favor," he said, "Now go to sleep."

She opened her eyes and looked at him.

"Was I dreaming?"

He stroked her arm.

"Yeah, but it sounded like you were winning."

She laid her head back on the pillow.

"I hope reality lives up to the dreams. "

"I'm sure it will be even better," he said, smiling.

"How so?"

"I think the judge's ruling will ensure that the ranchers' land will be safe," he said, "and hopefully it will stop the harassment and threats."

"It should," she said, "if they give up and move on elsewhere," she said, "but we still don't really know why they wanted this land."

"We'll figure that out when we get back," he said, "Now back to sleep."

"You know I really meant it when I said I was ready," she murmured.

"I know that," he said, "But there's no rush. We're paid up here two days and two more nights."

"That's good to know," she said, then drifted off to sleep again.

He gazed at her a while as she slept beside him, thinking it would be a while before he would get back to sleep.


	26. Chapter 26

Chapter 26--Here's another installment, I hope you enjoy it and thanks for the feedback! BTW, anyone else out there who does FF for MH? If so, I'd love to read it. I love writing it but I'd love to read some too. So anyone out there pleeese including the author of those other wonderful fan fics here... :)

* * *

C.J. woke up the next morning, as the sunlight streamed into her window. She felt Matt lying next to her, sound asleep. She didn't want to wake him as he looked so peaceful but she needed to get out of bed before he woke up. She settled first for sitting up, careful of course while extricating herself from beneath his arm which lay across her waist.

Her bare waist.

She yawned and stretched, feeling much more rested than she had yesterday. Her sudden movement rousted Matt from his slumber and he opened his eyes, looking at her before she could manage a clean getaway.

"Good morning," he said, leaning up on his elbow, "Going anywhere?"

His Texan drawl melted her again. She placed a casual smile on her face.

"It is a lovely morning and it's time to get up," she said, "I'm ready for some breakfast."

She jumped out of bed, leaving him in her wake before he could react. She knew if he did, she'd be lost and she needed to get her bearings again after having thrown herself at him last night. Her cheeks flushed at the lingering memories of her actions but she hid it well.

He watched her, shaking his head as she left the bedroom to head to the kitchen.

She cracked some eggs in the frying pan, in the kitchen and turned on the stove. She heard footsteps enter into the kitchen and his arms wrap around her waist from behind. He lifted her hair gently with one hand and kissed the back of her neck and it tingled down her spine. Damn, she hadn't gotten away soon enough after all.

"What are you cooking," he asked, looking over her shoulder.

"Scrambled eggs and bacon," she said, throwing some chives and onions on top of the bubbling mass of eggs.

"I'll whip up some toast," he said, reaching for the cupboard.

She tried to make casual conversation.

"I slept so well, better than I have in ages," she said, "How'd you sleep?"

He remained silent so she turned around to face him. His brow furrowed as if he were in deep thought and she hoped he wasn't thinking about last night.

"You did sleep, didn't you," she said, raising her brow.

"Yes…I did, quite well thanks," he said, placing some bread in the toaster.

She brightened.

"Good," she said, "After breakfast, I'm going to a festival in town to check it out if you want to join me. I think it's like a farmer's market."

He nodded, watching her move around the kitchen. As she reached up into a cupboard to get some plates, her nightshirt rose up her legs a few inches. He sucked in his breath and looked away. He knew what she was doing, trying to put some buffer between them and he played along...for now.

"That sounds…like a plan."

"I think so," she said, "We should be ready to leave about an hour after breakfast."

His eyes followed her as she moved from the stove to the counter, after she finished the eggs and bacon. She wrapped the meat in paper towels to absorb the grease and spooned the eggs onto two plates.

"There's some juice in the frig," she said, as she looked for the butter and jam for the toast.

He handed both to her, their fingers brushing. She took a deep breath, thanked him and then began buttering the bread.

"You're sure energetic this morning," he said, "just like that Energizer Bunny."

"You're right; I just needed a good night's sleep to feel like myself again," she said handing him a plate piled with food, "Here's some breakfast."

They ate together outside on the porch enjoying the crisp mountain air. She flipped her hair back and enjoyed her breakfast, savoring each bite. He enjoyed watching her enjoy her food, licking her fingers. She caught him looking at her and smiled back. She knew what she was doing.

"I love being out here in the clean air," she said, "It makes everything seem so fresh, wouldn't you agree?"

"Yeah, it sure puts both L.A. and Houston to shame, doesn't it?"

"Well, it's certainly a nice change," she said, "and it's so pretty here. Maybe I'll just pack up my things and move out to Colorado."

He raised his brows.

"You're kidding, right?"

She studied him.

"No, I'm serious. I can set up a legal practice here and do more land use cases, maybe even some environmental law" she said, "You know I did get an offer from the firm in Denver."

His fork stopped before it reached his mouth.

"Are you thinking about taking it?"

She shrugged.

"I thought about it some," she said, "I really do love my work in Houston. But I love the wide open spaces that are still left in this country and I need to be surrounded by beauty like this place here to feel like I'm home."

"Well, there's no reason why you can't have both," he said, "There's plenty of land outside of Houston that's undeveloped."

She nodded, sipping her juice.

"Yeah, I might go take a look at some of it when I get back. I need to think about the future and for me, it's falling asleep to the sounds of coyotes howling and crickets chirping, not cars driving down the street and people shouting. A place where it's safe for kids to run around and play like we did when we were young."

"Kids?"

She smiled, looking down at her plate.

"Well yeah, some day of course, not right now."

He hesitated.

"Would you like some company when you go out looking for your piece of paradise?"

She looked up at him, a faint smile crossing her lips.

"Sure," she said, "I'd love some. But I thought you loved L.A. and the whole scene out there. You've got friends and family out there now."

He thought he detected a hint of wistfulness in her voice beneath her cheerfulness.

"I've got family out in Houston too."

She found herself warming inside at his words.

* * *

When they finished eating, they both showered and changed. She decided to stray from the traditional jeans she had lived in since arriving at the ranch, opting for a casual summer dress and some comfortable shoes. She clipped her hair back off of her face and brushed out her soft bangs.

She ran into him in the hallway. His eyes widened.

"You're…"

"I'm what?"

"You're wearing a dress," he said.

She put her hands on her hips.

"Why is that so surprising," she said, "I'm a woman and woman have been known to wear dresses. So have guys but that's a whole separate conversation."

"It's just that…"

She pointed a finger at him.

"Not another word or I'm taking it off," she said, "and wearing some jeans instead."

"I'm not saying anything," he said, "I think you look really pretty this morning whatever you're wearing…"

"Or not?"

His face reddened a bit, and he tried to clear his throat.

"Would you like some water?"

"No…I was just saying that you look beautiful."

She smiled kissing him on the cheek.

"Thank you, you're so sweet," she said, "Now let's get going. I don't want to miss anything."

As he watched her walk way, he thought the day hadn't come yet where anything got past her. He didn't know what the day would bring but he knew it would prove interesting to find out.

* * *

They went to the festival which was very similar to a Farmer's Market, with tables stacked with everything from freshly picked crops to knickknacks. Some musicians played folks songs on separate stages. As the sun traveled across the sky and the air warmed, more people including parents chasing after small children appeared at the festival.

"This must be a popular hangout for families," C.J. said, as she and Matt strolled past the booths.

"it certainly seems that way," he agreed.

She purchased some peaches and strawberries and looked at the garden ornaments.

"You're into gardening now?"

She rolled her eyes.

"Yes, I started one back in Houston," she said, "It's pretty nice actually after some setbacks and very relaxing. Rhonda gave me some tips on which plants work best together."

He folded his arms.

"You're just full of surprises, aren't you?"

She shrugged.

"Not really, Houston," she said, "I'm pretty much one of those 'what you see is what you get' women. I leave the mystique to others to figure out."

They reached a woman dressed up in like a fortune teller sitting at a table in front of a crystal ball.

"Oh I want to check this out," C.J. said, "What about you?"

Matt cocked his head.

"Don't tell me you believe in that hocus pocus."

She reached for his hand.

"There are more things in this life than we can possibly understand," she said, "Besides, she works on a sliding scale and it looks like business is slow today. Let's do it for the economy."

He chuckled, his eyes sparkling and he squeezed her hand.

"Well if you put it that way…"

They went and sat down in front of Madame Zenobia, who looked at them sternly.

"We're…"

She put her hands up to stop them.

"No, don't tell me…you want your fortune told."

"Now there's a real psychic premonition," Matt said.

C.J. threw him a look.

"Shhhh," the woman said to him, then turned to C.J., "Give me your hands."

C.J. put them up and the woman examined them.

"You've got some interesting lines," Madame Zenobia said, "You've seen much pain lately."

"Yeah, they're called scars," Matt said, quietly.

"Shhhh…" she chastised him again.

"You've seen much pain in recent times," Madame Zenobia, "but Mr. Doubting Thomas here remained by your side throughout."

C.J. looked at Matt who shrugged.

"You will see more happiness in the months ahead, a couple bumps that will challenge the both of you because the past isn't quite dead but a few months later, a pleasant surprise awaits you, when you come through the gauntlet to the other side." Madame Zenobia said.

"That sounds eventful," C.J. said.

"That sounds vague," Matt said.

"Come back here in a year and tell me that everything I revealed to you today isn't truth by then," Madame Zenobia said, shaking her head at the skeptics of the world, "Now shoo, I have more paying customers waiting."

They paid her and walked away.

"She didn't even tell me whether or not I was going to get lucky tonight," Matt said.

C.J. playfully slapped him.

"Always in motion, the future," she said, grabbing his arm, "You'll have to wait and see."

* * *

They walked around some more as it grew hotter, then bought some cold drinks and sat in the shade beneath a tree, listening to the music.

"It's sure nice out there today," she said, looking at the people milling by.

"Come here," he said, and she did, as he wrapped his arm around her and she leaned her head against him.

"It's so nice being here with you," he said, "away from everything that's been going on in both our lives."

"Yeah," she said, "It gets so crazy, sometimes I just want to run away and just breathe for a while and then I remember I'm exactly where I want to be."

"In the Rockies, standing up to unscrupulous land dealers and gunslinging at evil henchmen, even getting arrested." he said.

She frowned.

"I'm sorry about all that."

He narrowed his eyes.

"What have you got to be sorry about?"

"I know, you came here out to relax and get away from it all," she said, "Look at all the excitement I've dragged you into. You must be exhausted and more stressed out than ever."

He suppressed a smile.

"I'm exactly where I want to be too so don't be worrying about me. In fact, I haven't felt this good in a long time. Must be the mountains working their magic."

Her face grew serious.

"Houston, about..."

He interrupted her after seeing the discomfort emerge on her face.

"I hope you didn't think because I turned you down last night, it was because I didn't want to be with you."

"No, you were right," she said, with a smile, "I did come on a little strong, didn't I?"

He raised a brow.

"A little, but you were happy from your court victory that you worked so hard to get and tired from working so hard and I'm certainly not complaining…"

She frowned.

"Do you really believe that was what last night was all about?"

He stroked her face.

"No I don't," he said, "But you were very tired from everything you've been through lately and you had some wine."

"I meant it Houston," she said, "I meant all of it. Yeah, I might have been punch drunk but I really wanted to make love with you, more than anything."

"I know you did," he said, "And I know what it means for you to say that."

She looked at him sideways.

"But I was a little scared too of what that really meant," she said, "So maybe I used being so happy about the ruling and my battle fatigue as an excuse to hide from that and I'm sorry."

He put his fingers beneath her chin and tilted her face up.

"There's nothing wrong with the way you feel," he said, looking at her, "You'll know when you're really ready and I'll be right here."

She looked indignant.

"But I am ready…I'm even on the pill so it's okay…"

Matt cleared his throat and tried to hide his smile.

"That's good to know…"

Suddenly, a familiar voice interrupted them.

"Why hello there,"

They both looked up as Sydney walked up to them.

"Oh my god," C.J. said, shaking her head, "Small world we live in."

"What are you two doing here?"

Both Matt and C.J. sat up.

"We flew up here for that court hearing we told you about a few days ago."

Sydney nodded.

"I know I was there," she said, "sitting in the back."

Matt and C.J. looked at each other.

"You kicked some serious ass woman," Sydney said, "Kilroy's attorneys were crawling back to their offices."

"I had a lot of help and we just presented the facts to the judge," C.J. said, "Yesterday, it worked in our favor."

"I thought you would have flown back down to Silver Lode by now and celebrated with your clients," Sydney said.

"We thought we'd stick around a day or so and check out the sites," Matt said, "Besides the plane busted a part on the way down and is being repaired."

Sydney put her hands to her face.

"Oh what a shame," she said, "But you're in a good spot, I could take you around and show you the highlights if you'd like."

Both Matt and C.J. shook their heads.

"No, no that's fine," he said.

"Your feature article is coming along real nicely," Sydney said, "It's ready for the Sunday paper. Everyone in Silver Lode will read it and love it. Don't be surprised if some of our eligible ladies give you a call."

C.J. suppressed a chuckle.

"I'm sure he'll be up for that."

"I'll have to get an unlisted number," he joked.

Sydney laughed and then stopped.

"Oh I just remembered," she said, "It's really lucky that we ran into each other."

"Why's that," C.J. asked.

"Because there's a gentleman here at the festival who might be able to help you on your case."

"But we won in court yesterday," C.J. said.

"I mean, he might know more about Kilroy Developers," he said, "He used to work for them but he still keeps in touch."

C.J. looked at Matt.

"Maybe we should talk with this guy," she said.

He nodded and helped her up on her feet. Sydney led them to the edge of the festival where an older man sat at a picnic table.

"Hey Lucas," Sydney said, "Here's those people I was telling you about earlier."

Lucas looked around, cautiously.

"We can't speak here," he said, "Come, we'll go to the diner."

Matt looked at C.J. who nodded.

"We might as well listen to what he has to say."

* * *

They headed into a diner and sat in a corner booth. A waitress came to take their order. Matt and Lucas ordered beers and the women ordered ice teas with lemon.

"Okay, what do you have to tell us," C.J. said.

Lucas looked at Sydney who nodded.

"I worked for Kilroy and his men for over 10 years," he said, "I did many a project for them and helped secure many a land sale. Usually, we offered low and if the property owner didn't bite, we went to the municipalities for assistance."

C.J. leaned forward.

"You mean you lobbied elected officials?"

Lucas nodded.

"We were usually successful," he said, taking a sip of his beer, "All we had to do was dangle the carrot in front of them that our projects were going to bring in piles of dough to fill up their coffers."

"Only those projects were never actually built."

Lucas nodded.

"You catch on fast," he said.

"I've been doing my research," C.J. said.

"Have you looked into the original geological surveys? I'm not talking about the recent ones but the original studies done years ago?"

Matt and C.J. looked at each other.

"Not yet," she said, carefully.

"You should," Lucas said, "That's where your answers are waiting."

"You mean that these surveys, these newer ones were doctored?"

Lucas looked away and then he nodded.

"If you look at some of the original studies for those parcels near Silver Lode, I'm sure you'll find that despite what the newer surveys claim, they actually found considerable natural resources."

"You mean mining ores?"

He nodded.

"But how could they pull this off," C.J. asked, "Aren't there protections against running this type of scam?"

"Normally yes," he said, "but you see by the time they get to this point, everyone's already bought off. The local politicians, the assessors, the land use commissions, even the local law enforcement."

"Yes, we noticed," Matt said.

C.J. put her chin on her hand.

"And what about the people who try to stop them?"

Lucas laughed mirthlessly.

"If this lady's right about you, then you already know the answer to that."

C.J. nodded slowly.

"I guess I do."

"That fight going on in Silver Lode's rattled a lot of cages in Kilroy's organization," Lucas said, "You best be careful of how you deal with them this point out."

"But the injunction…"

He shook his head.

"It's a piece of paper until you can find someone to enforce it," he said, "and that makes everyone fighting this most of all people like you who pose a real threat vulnerable to any ruthless tactics these goons will use to get what they want."

C.J. put her head in her hands.

"This just keeps going, doesn't it?"

"Well, you step on a rattler, you're going to get bit," Lucas said.

"Now there's a metaphor," Sydney said, reaching for her notepad.

Lucas shrugged.

"Let's just say that if I were you, I wouldn't take the main road back from the airport on Monday and I'd be real careful traveling at night by yourself," Lucas said, "Of course, you were supposed to go down with the plane but obviously that didn't work out for Kilroy."

Matt looked back at him.

"So that wasn't just a bad piece of equipment."

C.J. shook her head.

"You've got to be kidding," she said.

"You mean that problem with the plane wasn't a coincidence," Sydney said, scribbling in her notepad.

Lucas raised his hand.

"That was off the record, Lois Lane," he said, then looked at C.J., "That and the fact that if you'd spent that night in jail when you were arrested, you wouldn't have walked out of it."

Sydney's jaw dropped.

"Even me," she said.

Lucas just looked at her.

"Do you think they want reporters nosing around into what they were doing?"

Sydney shook her head.

"I was just writing a feature on the sexiest bachelor in Silver Lode," she protested, "not anything having to do with this whole ski resort scandal."

"Doesn't matter to them," Lucas said, finishing his beer, "I've got to go now. It's been nice talking with you folks."

"Hey, I need a quote," Sydney said.

"Here's one," Lucas said, "Thanks for the beer."

Sydney shook her head as he left the diner.

"These guys really are serious," C.J. said, softly, "if we didn't figure that out already."

"They're not going to win," Matt said.

"I'm sure as hell not going to let them," C.J. said.

"So what do we do next," Sydney asked.

C.J. looked at her.

"You can do whatever you want," she said, looking at Matt, "I'm going back to the cabin and…take a nap."

Sydney looked at her incredulously.

"After I brought you the mother lode of information, you want to go to sleep?"

"Look, I'm thrilled, really," C.J. said, "But I'm really tired from court yesterday and I need some...rest."

"It's still early," Sydney said, "We should check his lead out and maybe we'll get lucky."

"Maybe we should save our luck for another day," Matt said, "We don't want to use it all at once."

C.J. looked at Matt and smiled. Sydney looked nonplussed.

"But…"

"You're the reporter, so go knock yourself out," C.J. said, "I'm officially on vacation and I'm not thinking about this case anymore until I get back to Silver Lode."

Sydney looked at Matt.

"What about you," she said, "The day's still young."

"I better go to make sure she gets back all right," Matt said, "She gets a little bit tipsy when she drinks."

"She had the same thing I did, ice tea."

"It hits her a little bit harder than most folks," Matt said, quietly.

C.J. nodded.

"Sure does," she said, "Nothing some time in bed won't cure."

Matt bit back a chuckle.

Sydney looked at them and shrugged.

"Sure whatever," she said, "I've got to find my photographer. I think I lost him at the fishing gear booth."

She picked up her notepad and left them sitting alone.

* * *

"Are you really tired," Matt asked.

C.J. shook her head.

"No, and I don't really get drunk on ice tea," she said, laughing, "but maybe from other things."

He wrapped his arms around her and she rested her hands on his chest and they kissed. She savored the taste of his mouth on hers and ran her hands through his hair, loving how it felt between her fingers.

"This is nice," he said, coming up for air, "Very nice."

"Why did you stop," she said, breathlessly.

He outlined her lips with his finger.

"Because I think we'd better take this elsewhere," he said, "before we draw a crowd."

She nodded.

"Oh yeah...Works for me," she said.

* * *

They walked outside and noticed that the sky had darkened with clouds and it had started to rain.

"Wow, the daily monsoon, right on schedule," C.J. said, as the drops splashed her face.

He looked at her.

"What storm?"

She smiled and they hurried to find their car.

* * *

They stopped by the cabin door, soaked to the skin by the summer rain. He fumbled for the key to unlock the door. She removed it from him.

"Here let me," she said, unlocking the door.

Before she could open it, he pressed her against the side wall and kissed her. She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him closer, inhaling in his scent. He devoured her mouth as the rain fell on them.

"Are you sure this is what you want," he said, his voice husky.

She looked up at him, her lips swollen and she nodded.

"Yeah I am. I want you," she said.

She then raised a brow.

"Are you sure you're up for this because if you're not…"

He picked her up off the ground and she wrapped her arms around him. He opened the door and they stumbled into the darkened cabin.

"Where's the light," he said.

"Who needs it," she said, "I've got everything I need right here."

So did he.

* * *

He started to lead her to the bedroom. She stopped him.

"No, right here," she said, pulling him down onto the rug by the fireplace. They knelt on the floor and wrapped their arms around each other, kissing. He moved his lips slowly down her neck and she felt her skin tingle in the wake of his mouth which trailed down to her collarbone. She unbuttoned his shirt, pushing it slowly over his broad shoulders and then caressed the taut skin on his chest.

He raised a brow.

"I guess you managed to get my shirt off," he said.

"I guess I did," she grinned.

He unzipped the back of her dress slowly then slipped his hands inside. He found her breasts beneath the lace of her bra and trailed his fingers over them, reverently. She closed her eyes as he slipped the top of her dress over her shoulders and it fell off. Then his hands moved over her chest and he unsnapped her bra, freeing her breasts. He took a quick breath as he moved the bra straps over her shoulders and the expression in his eyes made her blush.

"You're a very lovely woman," he said, stroking them with his fingers as he kissed her. The rest of their clothes soon wound up in a pile nearby.

She swallowed audibly, pulling him closer to her body until his hardness met her softness.

"You're a pretty hot item yourself," she said.

He began pressing her against the rug which felt soft against her back and she pulled him down with her. He brushed her damp bangs out of her face with his finger tips as only inches separated them. She bit her lip looking at him memorizing every feature.

"Are you okay with this," he said, in between kisses.

She nodded, touching his face.

"I'm here."

He settled between her thighs and she took him inside her body and inside her heart. And together they found their way home.

* * *

They lay afterward in each others' arms, wrapped up in each other by the fireplace. Matt had pulled a comforter from the couch and covered them with it. She snuggled beneath it next to him, enjoying the warmth of his body.

"How you feeling," he asked.

She reached for his palm and kissed it.

"Wonderful."

"I'm glad," he said, wrapping his arms around her.

"What are you thinking," she asked.

"That I'm the luckiest man in the world right now," he said.

She smiled.

"I'm thinking that I never thought it would feel this good again," she said, "to be close to someone."

"Yeah, amazing isn't it," he said, kissing her shoulder.

"So what do we do now," she said, biting her lip, "We've kind of moved past the friendship stage."

"I guess we have," he said, "But you're still my best friend."

She turned her head to look at him.

"Don't they call it "friends with benefits" these days?"

"Some might if it works for them," he said, "But that's not what I'd call it."

"I never realized how much I wanted this moment," she said, "but I don't want to lose what we have."

He remained silent for a moment.

"You're here with me and I'm not letting you go."

Those words stuck with her as she drifted off to sleep in the arms of the man she loved.

* * *

The sun rose up over the mountains and the cabin had lightened when C.J woke up next to him. She watched him sleep and then got up, reaching for his shirt, slipping it over her shoulders until it covered her figure. She walked into the kitchen to make herself some tea to take back to the sofa where she sat with her feet tucked under her. Her muscles ached but in a good way, as they would through pleasurable exercise as she wrapped a comforter around her. They had spent the night in each other's arms, giving and taking as they discovered new things about each other. The way he made her feel both elated and frightened her because it felt so different to her. As he held onto her the last time they made love before dawn, she knew she could never walk away from him. Did he feel the same way, she wondered and what would she do if he didn't? But more importantly, what would she do if he did?

She sipped her tea.

"Hey you," she heard him say.

She looked up and saw him wearing sweat pants and no shirt. She loved looking at his muscled chest with a sprinkle of dark hair. She loved touching it even more. She smiled as he sat down next to her.

"Can I share that comforter with you?"

She placed a part of it over him, without answering him.

"Good morning," he said, "How you feeling?"

She looked at him.

"Really good," she said, "How about you?"

He put his arm around her and pulled her closer.

"A little sore," he said, "We never did make it to the bedroom."

"Yeah," she said, "What can I say? I got caught up in the heat of the moment."

He stroked her arm.

"Yeah, you really are something," he said, "Last night was incredible."

"I thought so."

"No, I mean that I don't think I ever felt this way."

"Houston, you don't have to…"

"Say that I don't want this to be a onetime thing?"

She shifted in his arms.

"You don't have to say anything."

"What if I mean it, C.J.," he said, "What if I want more than that?"

She looked at him.

"You really do," she said, "even after we go back to the ranch?"

He nodded.

"Yeah I do," he said, "I've wanted this for a long time."

She paused, different emotions hitting her at once.

"So have I," she said, "I've just been so scared to let anyone get close to me."

He stroked her hair.

"I know," he said, "And it means a lot to me that you took this step with me. More than I can say."

She snuggled against his chest.

"I don't want to walk away from this either," she said, "I just don't know what to do."

"Spend the rest of the weekend with me," he said, "and we'll figure it out together, okay?"

She nodded and so they did.


	27. Chapter 27

Chapter 27---Another chapter of this fanfiction. I hope you enjoy reading it and thanks for the feedback!

* * *

When they got back to the cabin at the ranch, they gathered their luggage out of the car and walked up to the front door. When they reached it, they put their luggage down on the ground and focused on more important things.

"Come here," Matt said.

And she did. They kissed as she wrapped her arms around his neck before he picked her up off of her feet and pressed her against the wall.

"When's Butterfly due back," he asked.

She took a breath.

"Not for a couple of hours."

"Then I suggest we make good use of our time," he said, kissing her again.

She nodded out of breath. He put her down and she took her key out to unlock the door and found that it was unlocked.

They looked at each other.

"Is someone here," Matt said.

"I know I locked the place up when we left."

She opened the door slowly and walked inside, wondering what awaited.

Chris and Rhonda looked up from where they were sitting on the couch with their feet resting on the coffee table, finishing off the Rocky Road ice cream between them.

C.J. sighed in relief.

"It's just you," she said.

Rhonda snorted.

"Hello to you too, girlfriend," she said.

"Sorry, it's great to see you," she said, "I just wasn't expecting either of you."

"I can see that," Rhonda said.

"We heard you needed help and decided to drop in and lend our assistance on your case," Chris said.

C.J. went outside and brought in her luggage followed by Matt who greeted the women.

"We won the injunction order," C.J. said, "So most of that work is done even though I'm sure Kilroy and his people will appeal."

Rhonda looked disappointed.

"That took the whole weekend?"

C.J. shook her head.

"Houston's plane had a busted part so we decided to stay in Denver for the weekend while it got fixed."

Matt nodded.

"She stayed to keep me company while I waited for the airplane to be repaired," Matt said, taking his luggage to his bedroom.

C.J. watched him go, sighing.

"So did you have a good time?"

C.J. turned to look at Rhonda.

"Huh? Oh yeah, we stayed in a cabin near Denver and we attended a festival and went hiking. Saw a gorgeous waterfall."

Rhonda grinned.

"Some great scenery, huh?

"Well, yeah, Colorado's known for that," she said, looking closer at the containers in her friend's hands, "What have you done to my Rocky Road?"

Both women looked at each other, chagrined.

"Chris got one of her cravings," Rhonda said, "And you know what they say about people eating alone."

"I think that's drinking alone," C.J. said, crossing her arms.

"There's still some Butter Pecan left in the freezer," she said.

C.J. sat down next to them.

"It's okay," she said, "As long as you left the chocolate marble fudge alone."

Her two friends looked at each other sheepishly.

"You ate that too?"

"We thought you would have been here when we arrived," Chris said.

"Did you call?"

Rhonda rolled her eyes.

"Obviously you didn't check your cell this weekend," she said, "You must have been quite preoccupied with…something."

C.J. ignored her innuendos.

"How are you both doing, besides having these intense cravings for my ice cream?"

Chris sighed patting her stomach.

"It's about the only thing I can eat," she said, "That and sauerkraut."

C.J.'s eyes widened.

"Oh it's not as bad as it sounds," Chris said, waving her arm, "I eat it with peanut butter, in a sandwich."

C.J. laughed.

"I'll take your word for it."

Chris looked at Rhonda, grinning.

"Why don't you tell her your news," she said, "Why we're really here in the middle of nowhere."

Rhonda looked doubtful.

"Should I?"

"Sure, she's sitting down now, what could it hurt?"

C.J. looked up.

"Now you have me intrigued," she said, "What's going on here?"

Rhonda took a deep breath.

"I'm getting married," she said, "And we're having the wedding right here on the ranch next week."

C.J. dropped her jaw and Matt had caught the tail end of Rhonda's news while entering the living room.

"She's marrying…Jonathan?"

Rhonda smiled broadly.

"He kind of asked me while we were biking across the country a couple weeks ago," Rhonda said, "Right next to the Elvis Presley museum in Memphis. It was kind of romantic actually and I thought about it and said, why not."

She showed off her ring.

"Was Jonathan in his right state of mind?"

"Of course, he was," Rhonda said, rolling her eyes at C.J., "Why wouldn't he be?"

"No reason," C.J. said, still floored at the news.

"You don't mind," Rhonda said, "You two used to be an item back in the day."

C.J. shrugged.

"Years ago," she said, "I'm very happy for both of you. I think if two people are in love, they should be together."

Chris smiled.

"I can't argue with that."

Rhonda harrumphed.

"Sounds like someone's been spending time in the Hallmark section," she said, "Since when have you started getting all soft on romance, C.J.?"

C.J. looked up at the ceiling.

"I've always thought romance has its…place."

Matt listened to the conversation but was smart enough to stay out of it.

C.J. looked at Rhonda and Chris and changed the subject.

"So how's Thea taking the news?"

Chris and Rhonda looked at each other.

"She's happy for us and gave us her blessing when Jonathan called from the horse park in Lexington," Rhonda said, "In fact, we're heading on down to meet her to discuss the menu for the rehearsal dinner."

"You are running to the altar," C.J. said.

Rhonda smiled.

"I guess so," she said, "But I don't want to be there alone. I want you to be there as my maid of honor," she said.

C.J. widened her eyes in response.

"Me," she said, "Are you sure?"

Rhonda nodded.

"Yeah, and Chris and Fran already agreed to be my brides maids…or brides matrons."

C.J. hugged Rhonda.

"I'll be more than happy," she said, "It's an honor."

"I know you're busy with this case you're working on and it's going to be a fairly small wedding so not much work will need to be done."

"I'll be there," C.J. said, "Oh…except there's a meeting tonight in town and a press conference. I'd love for you to be there if you're interested."

"Sure thing," Rhonda said, and Chris nodded.

"Thanks," C.J. said, "You're going to make a beautiful bride, Rhonda."

Rhonda's cheeks flushed.

"I didn't think I'd ever find someone, but I guess I did."

C.J. smiled at the glow on her friend's face, knowing it showed off a more vulnerable side of herself she didn't reveal often.

"It's interesting how that can just…happen when you least expect it."

The moment quickly passed and Rhonda turned back to the business at hand, her wedding.

"Do you want to go to the menu meeting," Rhonda asked.

C.J. rubbed her forehead.

"I'd love to, but I'm kind of tired from the trip and I have to rest up for tonight."

"So much for a weekend of relaxation," Rhonda said.

C.J. shrugged.

"Okay, we'll we're off then," Chris said, "We'll talk to you later."

They left and finally Matt and C.J were alone.

She turned to him.

"Where did we leave off?"

"I'm trying to remember," he said, before he did.

He reached for her and she fell into his embrace easily as if she had never left.

* * *

Later, they relaxed and she snuggled in his arms.

"So what's this about needing to get some much needed rest?"

She propped up on one elbow and looked at him.

"I don't think I've slept better than I have in the past few nights in a long time."

He brushed her hair back off of her face.

"I don't think I've either."

"I feel really good," she said.

"I won't argue with that," he said.

She playfully slapped him.

"It was a bit shocking to walk in and see them here," she said, "And then to hear Rhonda's news."

"So Jonathan and Rhonda are getting hitched."

She nodded with a smile.

"Yeah, who would have thought?"

"How do you feel about that," he asked.

"Really happy for both of them," C.J. said, "They both deserve happiness and despite their differences, I think they're a good match as Bonnie would say."

"I think she did say it," Matt said.

C.J. looked surprised.

"She talked to you about them?"

"A little bit," he said, stroking her arm, "Apparently she has a matchmaking gig on the side."

C.J. laughed.

"I know, but she's got a good track record so far."

"She could turn it into a full-time career," he said.

"I wonder what she would think about this," C.J. mused.

"I have a feeling she'd approve."

"I definitely approve," she said, kissing him.

* * *

Rhonda and Chris pored through some recipes that Thea had displayed across the table.

"They all look great," Rhonda said, "I wish we could sample some of them."

"We could do that," Thea said, "Pick some finalists and then cook up samples for taste tests."

Rhonda nodded.

"That sounds like a plan," she said, "Thanks for your help on this. I've never been involved in a wedding before."

"He's my son, and I love him," Thea said, "I trust his judgment including his decision of who to marry and weddings can be fun to plan."

"I know it's kind of short notice," Rhonda said.

Thea smiled.

"That's fine, I'm just happy you want my help," she said, "I never had a daughter so I'm enjoying this chance to do this for you."

"I think that filet dish looks magnificent," Chris said, picking out her favorite.

Rhonda nodded.

"I think the steak looks just as good."

"Sorry C.J. wasn't feeling well and couldn't join us," Thea asked.

"She's fine, just tired from her weekend," Chris said, "So she said she might do some relaxing to get ready for her press conference tonight."

Rhonda snorted.

"If she's doing some relaxing, it's not alone."

Chris looked at her.

"What the hell are you talking about?"

Rhonda put her hands on her hips.

"Honey, did we just sit in the same room with the same people?"

"Yeah…but you don't know them as well as I do, Rhonda. They're just very good friends. They've been so for years."

"Well, I would guess they're very good friends now," Rhonda said, "And I think that's great. I always thought they should get together."

"How can you be so sure they're together?"

"I know men and I know women," Rhonda said, patiently, "And I just know these things and I knew that about them as soon as they walked inside the room."

"I think you're wrong," Chris said.

Rhonda shrugged.

"We'll see…"

* * *

C.J. rubbed her head as she started piling her papers together.

"Are you ready for the meeting and press conference," Matt said.

She smiled.

"In every way," she said, "That relaxing really helped."

He embraced her from behind and kissed her neck.

"Anytime you need it."

"I'll keep that in mind," she said, "I loved spending these past few days with you."

He raised a brow.

"Just these past few days?"

She brushed her fingers against his face.

"No, but these were special."

"C.J., I meant what I said."

"I know you did," she said, "Let's see what happens."

He looked at her and then reached for his shirt, slipping it over his head.

"I'm going out to help Jed and Reed with bringing in some wandering cattle."

"I'll see you when you get back," she said, smiling.

They heard footsteps at the door and then someone knocked.

"Come on in," C.J. said.

Rhonda and Chris came in and both looked at Matt and her carefully. Matt greeted them and then walked outside.

"What's the matter with you guys," C.J. said.

Rhonda and Chris looked at each other then at her.

"Oh, nothing," they both said in unison.

They sat down on the sofa and put their feet up on the table.

C.J. folded her arms.

"Invading my house again since you've already eaten my ice cream?"

Rhonda shrugged.

"We're finished the first stages of discussing the menu and it's between steak and fish."

C.J. sat down in the chair, tucking her feet beneath her.

"Both sound delicious," she said.

"We needed someone to break the tie and you bailed on us," Chris said.

"I was exhausted from the trip back," C.J. said.

"Do you feel…less tired now," Rhonda asked.

C.J. nodded.

"I took a good rest," she said, "I feel much better already."

"So what exactly did you do for a whole entire weekend," Rhonda asked, stretching her arms and making herself home on the couch.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean in between checking out the beautiful scenery and visiting the local haunts."

C.J. ran her hand through her hair.

"We…talked."

Rhonda and Chris looked at each other.

"Uh-huh," Rhonda said.

C.J. rubbed her eyes.

"What are you getting at," she said.

"Is there anything to get at," Rhonda said, "That's the question."

C.J. rolled her eyes.

"What is going on here," she said, looking at Chris who just shrugged.

"It's just that I've never seen you look so…cheerful," Rhonda said.

C.J. folded her arms.

"What do you mean you've never seen me so cheerful?"

Chris chimed in.

"C.J.'s one of the happiest women I know," she said, "So what are you getting at?"

Rhonda paused.

"Maybe that's not the right word for it, but you seem…different."

"Well yeah, I just spent a weekend in the most beautiful spot," C.J. said, "after having just won a pivotal ruling from a federal judge on a case I'd been working weeks on nonstop."

Rhonda folded her arms.

"Okay, that's great," she said, "But I'm not talking about that. I'm talking about spending all that time alone with a great-looking guy like Matt and keeping your hands off of him for three whole days…and nights."

C.J.'s mouth dropped.

"I beg your pardon," she said.

She looked at Chris.

"Don't look at me," Chris said, "Rhonda's on her own on this one."

"Come on, there can be no secrets between a bride to be and her bridal court," Rhonda said.

C.J. narrowed her eyes.

"Where's that written in the rule book?"

"Yeah, that's news to me too, Rhonda," Chris said, "Where on earth do you get this stuff?"

"It's not written down," Rhonda said, "It's an understanding among women engaging in this sacred rite of passage."

"Bull…" C.J. said.

Chris nodded.

"Yeah I'll call it that too," she said.

Rhonda sighed.

"Come on C.J, come clean with us," she said, "What were the two of you really doing for the past couple days?"

C.J. ran her hand through her hair.

"I don't want to talk about this," C.J. said, "Can we change the subject and talk about what you're wearing at this wedding?"

Rhonda pointed her finger.

"Aha, so there is something going on here," she said.

Chris looked at C.J.

"I have to admit that your statement does sound somewhat…enigmatic."

Rhonda looked at C.J. closer.

"Look at that, her cheeks are turning pink," she said, "Fess up girlfriend."

"What, am I on the witness stand here," C.J. said, shaking her head, "I don't want to talk about it."

"Why not," Rhonda said, "We tell you everything about our relationships with our men."

C.J. shook her head.

"This is different," she said.

Rhonda folded her arms.

"How so," she asked.

C.J. fell silent for a moment.

"Because it's my best friend."

* * *

Matt was out riding with Jed and Reed when his cell phone rang. He reined in Whiskey and pulled his phone out.

"Hello?"

"It's me, Matt."

"Brody, why are you calling me?"

"The real question is why you haven't been returning my phone calls," Brody said, "I've been trying to reach you for the past couple of days."

Matt sighed.

"I've been taking a break from technology," he said, "and enjoying my vacation in these beautiful mountains."

Brody laughed.

"I'll bet," he said, "You've probably been chasing these bad guys around nonstop since you left L.A. and haven't taken time to relax."

"I was doing all that, and then I took some time off so you can pass that along to Uncle Roy so he'll stop worrying about me," Matt said.

"How's C.J.?"

"Fine, why do you ask?"

"Because she's the one who got run off the road by those nasty developers," Brody said, "Is she doing okay?"

Matt paused, as some visions of what they had been doing flashed in front of him.

"Matt, are you still with me?"

Matt grew irritated.

"I'm on the back of a horse out looking for some missing cattle," he said, "It's not the best time."

"Well, like I said, I called earlier and you were clearly busy…relaxing then."

"Why did you call me anyway?"

"Oh, the paint chips on the vehicle came back and traced back to a shade of Midnight Black that was pretty common particularly at some plants which manufactured pickup trucks."

"That sounds promising," Matt said, "C.J. said that some of the men harassing mustangs drove pickups."

"I'll forward the stuff and see what else comes back," Brody said, "Are you sure that you're not adding to your stress level there? You need to chill out for a while at least."

"I've been doing that," Matt said, "C.J.'s making sure that I don't work too hard and the ranch work is nothing I didn't do while growing up in Texas."

"I'll take your word for that being a city boy myself," Brody said, "But you'd better be telling me the truth or I'll take the next plane, train or pack mule on out there to make sure that you're actually taking a vacation."

Matt sighed.

"I'm fine. C.J.'s well. We're both getting the job done and having a good time. Nothing to worry about, so you just keep doing the fine job that you've been doing with my agency and we'll be back after we're finished with our work here and the wedding…"

Brody horned in on that one word.

"Wedding," he said, "Who's getting married? Don't tell me you've done something rash…"

"Oh no, Jonathan and Rhonda are getting married next week," he said, "They're having it at the ranch. C.J.'s in the wedding party."

"That sounds like a real happening event," Brody said, "You know, I had a fantasy when I was younger about being a cowboy. Maybe I should…"

"Talk to you later, Brody", Matt said, clicking off his phone.

* * *

C.J. sat back in her chair as she listened to Rhonda and Chris discuss wedding details. Mercifully, they had backed off on grilling her about her weekend with Matt but she knew it was only a matter of time before the questions resumed. She didn't feel like undergoing group analysis over a relationship that had changed in one weekend and still felt so new to her.

While they had driven down the windy highway back to the ranch, a silence fell between them. She looked out her window most of the time as the mountains and meadows breezed past bordered by wooded areas. Heeding their source's warnings, they took an alternative route until they hit the highway just outside Silver Lode and then paid close attention for trouble. The highway remained fairly empty of traffic during the rest of the way back to the ranch.

She felt more relaxed than she had in months, even longer. The morning after the first night they had ever really spent together had begun with them eating breakfast on the porch, basking in the morning sun and their ripening feelings for each other. Matt had made one of his infamous Texas omelets garnished with the requisite jalapeños he knew she loved and she had made some fried hash browns from a recipe she had picked up from Thea. Matt sat and watched her dig into her meal.

"You were clearly hungry," Matt observed.

She looked up at him, while scooping her fork into her hash browns.

"We skipped dinner last night," she said, "and we burned off a lot of calories instead."

"That we did," he agreed, "I just love watching a woman enjoy her food."

She shrugged.

"I love to eat," she said, "and I'm definitely hungry. Maybe it's the mountain air."

He raised his brows.

"Maybe," he said, "So you up for some hiking today?"

She took a bite of the jalapeno in her omelet, savoring the spicy flavor.

"Where did you have in mind?"

"There's a trail near here that leads up to a beautiful waterfall that feeds into the river," he said, "Legend says that if you kiss underneath the waterfall, you will enjoy eternal happiness with each other."

She laughed.

"Who told you that tall tale?"

He shrugged with a smile.

"Bill, on one of his fishing trips."

She relented.

"Okay in that case, it sounds like a wonderful tradition," she said, "Did you want to go test it out?"

"Only if you're up to it," he said, "We could pack some lunch for a picnic when we get up there. It's a bit of a hike and we'll probably be hungry then."

She stretched her arms.

"Mmmm, that sounds nice," she said, "I'm definitely up for it."

They hiked up to the breathtaking waterfall and it was everything he said. Beautiful, majestic and when he led her under the waterfall to a rocky ledge and they kissed for a while, she felt as if time had stopped and no one existed in the world but them.

* * *

"C.J…"

She lifted her head up from her arms.

"What…did I miss something?"

Both Chris and Rhoda looked at her strangely.

"We were talking about dresses," Rhonda said.

"What dresses?"

Rhonda folded her arms.

"For the wedding," she said, "Do you like rosy pink or pale lavender?"

C.J. tried to think, but instead she saw the waterfall.

"Both are fine," she said, "Both would be lovely."

"We need to pick one or the other," Rhonda said, "Then again, I don't know what I'll be wearing.

"You haven't even picked out your dress yet," Chris said, incredulously.

Rhonda sighed.

"This was all kind of sudden," she said.

"I should think so," Chris said, "Is there anything you haven't told us?"

"Meaning…"

"Any surprises," Chris said, "any chance you'll be raiding my stash of sauerkraut?"

Rhonda snorted.

"I'm not pregnant if that's what you mean," she said, "Just in love."

C.J. nodded.

"That's a good reason," she said, "You don't need a fancy dress anyway to get married."

Rhonda nodded.

"You're right," she said, "Besides Thea said she would help me find one."

"Well, it looks like all your wedding plans are falling into line," C.J. noted.

"Except one," Rhonda said.

"What's that?"

"Where are we going to throw the bachelorette party?"

* * *

"So Jonathan's getting married," Jed said as he and Matt headed back to the ranch.

Matt nodded.

"His fiancée Rhonda and Chris arrived at the ranch I guess when C.J. and I were coming back from Denver."

"How'd that go?"

"Very well for C.J. on this development case," Matt said, "But I think someone sabotaged my airplane."

"Are you sure," Jed asked.

Matt sighed.

"An anonymous source that C.J. and I met with told us we were supposed to go down in the mountains on the flight to Denver."

Jed whistled.

"Who was this person?"

"A former employee for Kilroy's development firm," Matt said, "He worked on similar…assignments while employed."

"These people are truly desperate, but can't they see they're losing?"

"I don't know about that," Matt said, "We've got that injunction in place but we still need someone to enforce it because those who are supposed to do so haven't stepped up to the plate."

Jed laughed derisively.

"I'd say the opposite in some cases," he said.

"How the ranchers doing at the Wyatt place," Matt said, as they neared the barn.

"They're doing as well as can be expected," Jed said, wiping his brow, "Considering they've been on active duty for several weeks."

They reached the ranch and got off their horses, leading them into the barn. Butterfly ran up to them.

"Did you hear the news about Rhonda and Thea's son," she said, excitedly.

"I did and I know Chris is really happy to see you again," Matt said.

"Yeah," Butterfly said, "I missed her too."

"What's been going on," Matt asked.

"Thea and I were discussing flower arrangements for the wedding," Butterfly said, "Something both earthy and simple, yet elegant and vibrant."

Jed laughed.

"Sounds like a tall order," he said, "But Thea knows a great florist. He did our wedding."

Butterfly smiled widely.

"I just think this whole wedding thing is so exciting," she said, running back to the barn.

Matt watched her.

"I hope she's not in there with Carter again," he said.

"Oh Reed's got him busy painting the shed at his ranch," he said, "So you going to the press conference in town?"

Matt nodded.

"We were told by that guy that things are still very dangerous," he said, "and that C.J. needs to be careful but she's too busy working on this case to look out for herself."

"We'll do that, Matt."

"I'm just hoping that there's no trouble at the press conference," Matt said, "But I've got a feeling…"

"We'd best be prepared, I think," Jed said, "And we will be."


	28. Chapter 28

Chapter 28---This is the latest installment of this fanfiction story. I hope you like it and thanks for the comments!

* * *

"Bachelorette party?"

Rhonda rolled her eyes at Chris.

"Of course, what would a wedding be without one," she said.

"Okay, I think I need to get more ice cream," Chris said, getting up, "Don't make any rash decisions until I come back."

"Try the Butter Pecan," C.J. said.

Rhonda shook her head.

"Sometimes I wonder about her…"

C.J. leaned back on the chair.

"I think she's a little bit surprised at your exuberance over watching a man strip who's not your fiancé."

Rhonda looked at her fingernails.

"Maybe she's right," she said, "but then again Chris turned beet red at the party I threw for her before she got hitched and that's before the guy even took off one stitch of clothing."

"Chris just isn't into that," C.J. said, "Not all women are you know."

"And do you fit in that category?"

"Well….I…"

"I mean do you think the guys have philosophical discussions like this before they start tucking dollar bills in the g-strings of strippers at their parties?"

"Well, no but…"

"Then why should we women," she said, "It's just one last chance to unwind before taking that stroll down the aisle. What's the harm in that?"

C.J. shrugged not really in the mood to argue with Rhonda.

"Part of me agrees with you that it's harmless fun," she said, "The other part of me remembers what it felt like when they forced us to wear skimpy outfits and entertain those men at Piser's mansion."

Rhonda grew silent.

"This is different," she said, "The strippers we hire are just stripping and have chosen this line of work. It's good money."

C.J. nodded, not entirely convinced.

"And they're men," Rhonda added.

"That makes it okay?"

"No...but...you don't have to come if you don't want to," she said.

"I'll come...if just to make sure you behave yourself."

Rhonda sighed and rested her chin on her hand.

"Maybe it's not even practical," she said, "I mean where are you going to find a stripper out in the middle of nowhere?"

C.J.'s brows rose.

"That could be a problem."

Rhonda brightened.

"Maybe, we could ship one in from out of town," she said, "Or get a local rancher to volunteer to take his duds off for a good cause."

C.J. suppressed a laugh.

"I don't know about the ranchers, but I think their girlfriends and wives might have a problem with that."

"Not if we give him back after the party," Rhonda protested.

Chris returned in the middle of this debate with a container of ice cream. C.J. noticed that it didn't look like the Butter Pecan.

"Hey, what flavor is that?"

"Marble Fudge," Chris said.

"I thought you ate all of it earlier," C.J. said.

"Guess not," Chris said, sitting back on the couch and digging into it with her spoon.

Rhonda dug her spoon in the ice cream as well.

"So Chris, what entertainment do you think I should have at the party?"

Chris looked up.

"Why don't you just host a spa night," Chris said, "We could sit around giving each other pedicures and trade entertainment gossip and dessert recipes."

Rhonda blanched.

"I don't think so," she said, "Do you think the guys are just going to sit around and play cards."

Chris flushed.

"I guess not," she said, "I hope Dan's flying up after the men have their soiree. "

"I'm sure he won't want to miss the bachelor party," Rhonda said.

C.J. sat bemused watching her friends.

"What about Matt," Rhonda asked.

She tilted her head.

"What about him," C.J. said.

"What if he decides to attend Jonathan's party?"

"That's fine with me," C.J. said, "It's not my decision what he decides to do."

The front door opened and Matt walked in with Butterfly.

"Butterfly," Chris said, "How are you and Thea doing with the floral arrangements?"

The younger girl smiled.

"Great," she said, "Thea's friend is a florist who did an awesome job with Jed and Bonnie's wedding."

Rhonda sighed in relief.

"One less thing to worry about," she said, "Thanks Butterfly."

"Well since I'm filming the wedding," Butterfly said, "I have to make sure the setting's just right."

"Fair enough," Rhonda said, "I really think this wedding might actually be coming together."

Matt took off his coat.

"I'm going to shower and get ready for the meeting," he said.

C.J. took one look at him.

"You've only been back a few hours and you look like you got dragged through a meadow by a bull."

He smiled.

"Something like that," he said, leaving the woman.

C.J. watched him go.

"You know, you could keep him company," Rhonda said, "We won't mind."

Chris rolled her eyes.

"Don't listen to her, C.J.," she said, "She's been a pain since we left Houston this morning."

C.J.'s face flushed at how easily Rhonda had read her. Was she really that transparent? She dismissed her thoughts, looking at her watch and focusing on the business at hand and not thinking of…other things.

"We've got to get to town in about an hour," she said, "So who's riding with me?"

* * *

They took off for Silver Lode, for the press conference. Thea said that she would head out with Jed who would meet Bonnie at City Hall. C.J. had decided to hold the press conference there remembering how many times that she and the town folks had to stand and listen to similar events held by city officials. Now the shoe would be on the other foot for a change and C.J. found that fact refreshing. She doubted people like Mayor Parker would agree.

Bonnie and other women had set up tables with some food from the diner and water bottles from Bonnie's store. C.J. walked up and introduced her friends to Bonnie and left them to talk with her while she went with Jed to help set up the stage for the press conference.

She joined him and Matt on the steps and they carried up their podium to place just outside the doorway of City Hall. The door opened and Parker stuck his head out.

"What is going on here," he demanded.

C.J. stopped working and turned around to face him.

"We're holding a press conference," she said.

He stepped out.

"You can't do that," he said, "You don't have a permit."

"I don't need one," she said, "This building's paid for by tax dollars and this is a free country."

"Sorry, but we just passed an ordinance in closed session that permits will be required for demonstrations and rallies at or in front of City Hall."

Jed shook his head.

"What the hell," he said.

C.J. folded her arms.

"So what happens if we don't have a permit and we hold our press conference?"

"You'll be arrested and carted off to jail," he said, "and this time you'll be in for more than a few hours."

"What gives you that authority," C.J. said, "I doubt that your new ordinance is Constitutional."

Parker's face turned red. C.J. turned toward Matt and Jed.

"He's just upset because Kilroy lost the injunction battle in court," she said, "We're having this press conference but maybe we'll move it to the diner and sue them tomorrow."

Jed nodded and they began moving the podium. Parker watched them, befuddled.

"What…What are you doing?"

"We're moving our press conference to the diner," C.J. said, "It doesn't have to be at City Hall."

Another woman came outside to watch them. She turned and faced Parker.

"What in the hell are you trying to do to these people?"

Parker straightened his tie.

"Councilwoman Morris," he said, "It's just a private matter."

"Horse hockey," she said, "You're trying to stop these folks from exercising their Constitutional rights."

"But the ordinance…"

"I didn't vote for it," she said, "and I am giving them their permit to speak here."

"But you can't, that's not the process…"

"It is now," she said, turning to C.J., "You can have your press conference here if you still want to and if anyone tries to stop you...they'll be sitting in a jail cell."

Parker backed away. C.J. reached her hand out to Morris who took it.

"Thank you very much," she said, "We'll have the conference here and we'd like you to join us."

Morris smiled.

"Okay I think I will."

* * *

Word got around quickly through phone trees and other means about the press conference at City Hall and a large crowd turned out. This time the mood seemed more buoyant and when C.J. stood at the podium, she saw a sea of happier faces. They grew silent when they saw that she was ready to speak.

"Hi everyone, I'm C.J. Parsons," she began, "and I'm just here to tell you that we won the permanent injunction at the federal court in Denver last Friday."

Cheers and whistles arose from the crowd.

"However important that victory is to preserving the way of life important to both ranchers in the valley and residents of Silver Lode, the injunction is powerless unless we can find a mechanism to enforce it. Normally, the law enforcement agencies fill this capacity but I have been informed that there will be delay in the deployment of federal law enforcement officers from Denver and as we have seen, there has been no cooperation among local law enforcement agencies including that run by Sheriff Daniels."

Now the crowd booed. Daniels watched the proceedings from a safe distance away and didn't look pleased.

"So until the federal officers arrive, we will need volunteers to handle the monitoring of the injunction on both the old Wyatt ranch and the Flynn land."

"I'll volunteer," a voice rang out and others joined it.

C.J. smiled as she looked at Matt and Jed.

"This might work," she said.

"That's pretty much all I have to say," C.J. said, "If you want to volunteer, we have folks here who will add you to the roster."

* * *

After she finished, the crowd broke up and many individuals did move towards the areas where people were being signed up. C.J. walked to where her friends stood with Bonnie and Thea. They applauded when she reached them.

"Very impressive counsel," Rhonda said, "I think you showed them."

"I hope so," C.J. said, "But Kilroy did appeal the decision almost immediately after the judge issued it and it's too quiet from that end."

"Maybe they realize it's a lost cause," Rhonda said, "And will move on."

Bonnie made a face.

"I don't trust Kilroy and his men," she said, "They're up to something."

C.J. nodded slowly. She thought so too.

"But in the meantime," Bonnie said, "I'll treat everyone to dinner at the diner."

"I'll meet you there," C.J. said, then went looking for Matt.

She found him loading the equipment back in someone's truck.

"You ready to go to dinner," she asked.

He looked at her and caressed a lock of her hair.

"Yeah, come on," he said taking her hand.

They walked to the diner.

Butterfly had her camera out and filmed everyone as they sat at the tables. Chris checked out a menu.

"Do they have sauerkraut on anything," she asked.

Rhonda looked at her.

"This isn't a deli," she said, "Here, have a chili burger with extra onions."

"They're really good," C.J. said, "You should try one."

Chris shrugged.

The waitress took their orders.

"I want to talk about the bachelorette's party," Rhonda said.

"That again," Chris said, looking annoyed, "This isn't the appropriate time."

Butterfly looked at everyone.

"Rhonda's having a stripper party," she said, "Cool, I'll film it."

Chris looked horrified.

"No you won't," she said, looking at Rhonda, "See what you've done?"

Rhonda shrugged.

"Well, it won't matter if we can't find a stripper in this neck of the woods."

Thea sighed.

"They are hard to find in this part of the state," she said, "You might have to call into Pueblo or Colorado Springs to get a reputable one."

Butterfly's eyes widened. Both Chris and Rhonda looked at Thea as well. Still, Butterfly recovered first.

"Thea, you're really down with them having a stripper?"

"I'm older generation, but I'm not ancient," Thea said, "I had a bachelorette party myself before my own wedding. Only I sneaked out to go night fishing with Gordon in the middle of it. I don't think I was missed."

"But that's bad luck, to see your groom before the wedding," Butterfly said.

"Not for us," Thea said, "We had a great wedding and some very happy years of marriage before Gordon's death."

* * *

C.J. and Matt sat with Jed and Bonnie in another booth.

"That press conference went great," Bonnie said, "We got a lot of people to sign up to watch the properties."

"That's great," C.J. said, "I think if it gets out that the ranchers are taking the initiative to do what the police should be doing, it will galvanize a quicker response from the feds."

"They've got to do something before someone else gets hurt or killed," Matt said.

Jed agreed.

"It's been quiet lately but that could change quickly," he said, "We don't know how Kilroy's going to react and I really don't trust that Nick guy."

C.J. felt a sudden chill and looked the other way.

"Well, since Chris is here, Butterfly will be staying with her at the ranch house," she said, "It's safer there."

"Will you two be okay out in the cabin," Jed said.

C.J. and Matt looked at each other.

"We'll be fine," she said, "We'd like to stay there."

"Okay," Jed said, "Then I think everyone's set."

"So how was your trip to Denver," Bonnie said, "Besides that near mishap with the airplane."

C.J. smiled.

"It was nice," she said, "Plenty of time to relax and see some really beautiful sites."

"What about you Matt," Bonnie asked.

He looked up startled.

"Oh yeah…beautiful sites and relaxing…"

Bonnie chuckled.

"Well whatever relaxing you did," she said, "It certainly agrees with the both of you."

"Bonnie…" Jed started.

"I didn't say anything, did I, that's not written on both of their faces."

* * *

"I think everybody knows about us," C.J. said to Matt.

They walked from the car to the cabin, holding hands. She loved the feel of his fingers interlaced through her own.

He smiled at her.

"Is that a bad thing," he asked.

She shook her head.

"No, not at all," she said, "It's just so different between us. I just needed time to get used to it, to believe it's real."

"C.J., this isn't going to be a brief interlude in our friendship," he said, "I want more than that."

She leaned into him as they reached the front door. She got her key out of her pocket and then she stopped, looking at him.

"I love you," she said.

"I love you too," he said not for the first time in the years they had known each other.

She leaned against the door and looked up at him, shyly.

"No, I'm in love with you," she said, "and there's a difference."

He stood still, looking at the emotions churning in her eyes. He knew his response mattered to her as much as anything he had ever said.

"I know," he said, quietly, "I've been feeling that way myself for quite a while."

Her eyes narrowed.

"Really?"

"Yes, really," he said, "I've wanted to tell you for a long time but it was never the right time."

She nodded.

"With everything that was going on, I don't know if I would have heard the words."

He drew her into his arms.

"Well, I've always been a man of action and few words," he said, "So why don't you let me show you?"

"I'd love that," she said, "if you think you're up to it."

She opened the door and he led her in the cabin and they closed the door behind them.

* * *

C.J. woke up with a start in his bed. She felt the warmth of Matt sleeping next to her and smiled. Just when she thought she couldn't feel any closer to him, he drew her in further. She wrapped her arms around him and molded her body around his. He moved in response to her touch and she kissed his shoulder, just below a puckered scar from a bullet wound.

She sat beside his bed side someplace else a world away where he lay asleep recovering from surgery to remove a bullet in his shoulder. After the men arrived to assist them, they had lifted Matt by helicopter to a trauma center and she had ridden alongside him holding his hand the whole time, telling him he was going to make it.

The surgery had been successful and they had bandaged his shoulder and put his arm in a protective sling. He had woken up in recovery but had slept on and off for two days. She had remained by his side most of the time, not wanting to leave even to answer questions that investigators had for her. While conscious, he noticed that sleep eluded her and when it came, it brought images that made her restless in her chair beside his bed. He sighed realizing they both had to deal with recovering from their own injuries in their own ways.

She had finally drifted off to sleep again, his hand still in hers, its warmth reassuring her that he was back safely in the land of the living. A squeeze of her fingers jolted her from her slumber. She woke up and saw that he had opened his eyes.

"Hi there," she said, caressing his face with her hand. It had regained its color although he had grown stubble during the past couple of days.

His throat felt scratchy so she helped him take a sip of water from a glass.

"How are you doing," she said.

"Better now that my best friend is here," he said, smiling weakly, "How long have I been out?"

She shrugged.

"Only a couple of days," she said, "You didn't miss much."

"What happened," he asked.

She realized that he didn't remember much and it wasn't the right time to fill in the gaps of his memory. She stroked his face.

"It's over," she said and left it at that.

He nodded, reading the expression on her face.

"Come here," he said.

She looked at him puzzled.

"C.J.," he said, "You need to get some rest and I've got plenty of room here."

"You've just been shot," she said, "You lost a lot of blood."

"You lost a lot more than that," he said, "and besides I'm lonely."

She softened and got into bed with him, being careful not to jostle his shoulder.

"Now let's both get some rest."

She curled against him and fell asleep and this time she didn't dream.

Now later, C.J. sat up and looked into the darkness. Matt woke up and looked at her.

"What's wrong," he said, "Bad dream?"

She shook her head.

"I thought I heard something outside."

That caught his attention and now he listened as well.

"Do you hear that," she said.

He nodded.

"It sounds like someone near the back door."

C.J. started to get out of bed.

"No you stay here," Matt said, "I'll check it out."

C.J threw him a look of indignation.

"I'm going with you," she said, "Remember you still work for me."

"We haven't been working at all…lately," he observed.

"True, but I'm still going with you," she said and pulled down the covers.

"Uh, C.J."

"What's wrong?"

"I don't think we can go out like this," he said.

She looked at him puzzled then remembered.

"Good point," she said, "Where's my clothes?"

"I think they're with mine in the other room."

The noise grew louder.

"That's it," she said, getting out of bed.

He watched her search for a shirt, which she slipped on and she threw him his sweat pants. He put them on and they both went to the kitchen but not before Matt. got his handgun.

"Be careful," he said.

She opened the back door slowly and they both looked outside. They looked out past a wooden fence to an open meadow. The moon shone brightly overhead and all seemed quiet.

"I don't see anyone," he said, "Maybe it was an animal."

Then C.J. looked down and saw it.

"What's this," she said, looking at the thick envelope.


	29. Chapter 29

Chapter 29---Here's the latest chapter of this story. Thanks for reading! I hope you like it and thanks for the feedback!

* * *

They both looked down at the thick envelope for a while.

"Does it look dangerous," C.J. asked.

Matt studied it closer and then decided to pick it up.

"Careful," C.J. said as he did so.

He turned it over looking for any information on who delivered it but found nothing.

"Do you think it's more documents," C.J. said.

He opened it up and looked inside of it carefully, to make sure there were no surprises.

"Looks like it," he said, handing it over to C.J.

She pulled out some older documents that included assessments done on some of the other properties.

"There's quite a few here," she said.

"Come in, let's go back inside," Matt said, "We'll check these out in the morning."

"I like these gifts so much better than Molotov cocktails," C.J. said, holding the envelope close to her.

* * *

The next morning, Matt and C.J. went to the ranch house to join their friends for breakfast. They grabbed their plates and got in line. C.J. sat near Rhonda and Chris who were digging into their food.

"It's nice to see you eating something besides my ice cream," C.J. said.

"We might be going into town and picking up some more Rocky Road," Chris said, "You're kind of out of it."

"I wonder where it all went since I had plenty of it before I left for Denver," C.J. said, sipping her juice," How'd you both sleep in the ranch house?"

"Wonderful," Chris said, "It must all this fresh mountain air."

Rhonda scooped up some eggs on her toast.

"How did you sleep," she asked, "in the cabin by yourselves."

C.J. shrugged.

"Just fine," she said, "We did get a visit in the middle of the night."

That caught both Chris and Rhonda's attention.

"Who was it," Chris asked.

"We don't know. They didn't stick around long," C.J. said, "They left us a thick envelope filled with useful land documents."

"So it wasn't another one of those flaming…"

"Molotov cocktails, Chris," Rhonda said, with a sigh, "Don't you know anything?"

"Actually I do Rhonda," she said, "I had a fake bomb thrown through my living room window once."

That had happened when Matt had flown out to Houston trying to find C.J. after he had come back from a six month sabbatical and she hadn't been seen for months.

"That was that Duval guy," Rhonda said, "I hardly think these jerks out here are in his league."

"I hope not," C.J. said.

"So what did Matt think?"

C.J. looked up.

"Oh he was worried at first it was another attempted attack," she said, "but he thinks it might be our anonymous source."

"You mean the one you've been meeting in the park," Chris said, "Do you have any idea who that person could be?"

C.J. shook her head.

"No idea at all."

* * *

Matt sat with Jed and Reed. He had told them what had happened during the night.

"So you think this might be a person who's helping you," Jed said, "and not our other mysterious visitor."

Matt nodded.

"It's probably that person that we met with in the park a couple of times," he said, "he or she might be scared to meet us there after Kilroy's thugs showed up."

"So what's in the documentation," Jed asked.

"It's more environmental impact studies," Matt said, "Some more geological surveys. We think that Kilroy's more interested in what's in the ground than building on top of it."

"So they've gotten hold of some old surveys that show there might be something to that and then producing newer ones that might be altered?"

"It's possible," Matt said.

"It sounds like a lot of work," Jed said.

"If they get the land cheap and hold onto it for a while, it would probably be worth their while if there's something of value on it that just suddenly gets discovered by its new owners."

Jed shook his head.

"Mining can be so destructive to the land," he said, "Not to mention the environment."

"It would completely change the lifestyle in the valley," Matt said, "Kilroy knows that if they were upfront with what they really wanted, not only would the land be more expensive but the opposition would be much more fierce."

"No one here is about to sit around and let that happen,"Jed agreed, "It would create much bigger opposition and protests than Kilroy and his men are ready to face."

"Then we have to make sure we find the truth and expose it publicly," Matt said.

* * *

"So where do you think we'll be able to find a stripper for our party," Rhonda asked.

The other women groaned.

"Are you still thinking about that," Chris said, "You should be worried about what happens when you're up at the altar with the minister rather than your bachelorette party."

"Speaking of which," Rhonda said, "I have to make an appointment with him."

"The stripper or the minister?"

Rhonda looked at her nails.

"Maybe someone who does both?"

Chris blanched.

"I can't believe you just said that about someone of the cloth!"

"I'm kidding," Rhonda said, "Actually I have to meet with the minister who's marrying us."

"Do you even have one picked out?"

Rhonda snorted.

"Of course I do, Chris," she said, "Jonathan and I are going with the guy who baptized him when he was a boy."

"This should be a very interesting conversation," Chris said, "Mind if we tag along?"

Rhonda looked at them, thinking.

"I wouldn't mind," she said, "What about today?"

"I have to go into town to look at some more records at City Hall," C.J. said, "but it shouldn't take all day."

Butterfly walked in the room, engrossed in a newspaper she was reading.

"Whatcha reading," Rhonda asked.

Butterfly looked at them.

"Oh this way out cool article on Matt that the reporter chick Sydney wrote on him."

"Let me see that," Rhonda demanded and people started crowding around.

Except for Matt, who sat contented with his coffee and watched them. He never liked reading his own press.

"We've got to buy out the edition," Chris said, "Do you think they could sell us like a hundred or so?"

"Chris, we don't want to entirely clean them out," Rhonda said, "We want the town's people to have copies to read too."

"Great quote by you, C.J.," Chris said, "Where you said he was as sexy as all get out."

Rhonda raised her brow.

"So what was that assessment based on," she said, "Care to share that?"

C.J. just looked at them, trying not to get flustered.

"Not really…I don't kiss and tell," she said with a shrug, before taking another bite of her toast.

"These pictures of him….," Rhonda said, looking at C.J., "I thought you said he took off his shirt."

"Well he chose not to do so Rhonda," C.J. said, "And I think the pictures turned out better for the article."

Rhonda crossed her arms.

"So you think he looks better with his shirt on than off?"

"I didn't say that," C.J. protested, "I just think for the purposes of the article…"

"So he looks better with it off then," Rhonda said, "I think he's got great muscles, actually. Okay I like Jonathan's better but it's a personal thing."

Thea just looked at them and shook her head, trying to suppress laughter.

"It's not like I tried them both out like you did."

C.J. put her fork down.

"What did you just say?"

Rhonda put up her hands.

"Okay, wrong choice of words."

"I should say so," C.J. said.

"Excuse me, why are we talking about this at the breakfast table," Chris said.

"Because we were talking about the bachelorette party," Rhonda said, "and got a bit off-track."

* * *

Jed looked up at the women.

"It looks like they're having some disagreement," he said.

Matt looked closer at them.

"It must be wedding talk," he said, "Nothing gets women excited like when there's a wedding going on."

Jed laughed.

"It's certainly going to be an interesting week," he said, "But it should work out in the end."

"I hope Jonathan knows what's ahead of him," Matt said, "Rhonda's a good woman with a good heart but she is going to keep him on his toes."

"That makes for a more interesting marriage," Jed said, "Bonnie's like that in her own way. Never a dull moment."

"I wouldn't know," Matt said, "I've made it to the altar but never past it."

"You will someday," Jed said, "You look like a man who family means everything to in your life."

Matt nodded.

"It does," he agreed, "I grew up with only my father and then he passed on. I still have an uncle and a cousin living in L.A. but eventually, I do want a family of my own to come home to at the end of the day."

"There's nothing better," Jed said, "I remember that every day that I get up in the morning and go to sleep at night."

"But marriage's not easy," Matt said, "even in the best of circumstances."

"Nothing worthwhile ever is, Matt," Jed said, "But marrying Bonnie was one of the best decisions I ever made," Jed said, "I wouldn't go back if I could."

* * *

Back at the cabin, C.J. gathered her folders and placed them in her briefcase.

"So you going back to City Hall," Matt asked.

She nodded.

"For a while," she said, "Then we're going to meet Bonnie for some lunch."

"I'll be out making sure we've coordinated the different shifts of people looking after the properties covered by the injunction."

"Thanks," she said, "That's really important for it to work at least until the feds in Denver get their act together and come on down here."

"My friend Kent is doing all he can to get them dispatched faster," Matt said.

C.J. ran her hand through her hair.

"That's good," she said, "I'll see you later."

He drew her into his arms and they kissed.

"That was a really good article," she said, looking up at him, "I think it captured who you are underneath the great looks."

He smiled and stroked her hair.

"Not that it captured everything of course," she continued, "It missed a few things."

"Like what?"

She smiled.

"I'll tell you later," she said, "I got to go."

She kissed him again and then she was gone.

* * *

C.J. headed into town and parked her car. She took her things and headed up the steps to City Hall. She entered the building and immediately ran into Edna, Keeper of the Records. Edna looked up at her and sighed.

"We had to close the records room for a day," she said, grabbing her keys, "Someone broke the furniture."

"Oh how awful," C.J. said.

Edna nodded.

"The table had to be replaced," she said, "We were very lucky that Luke had some time in his busy schedule to custom build one just like the old one."

"That's great," C.J. said, smiling, "Do you have any idea how it happened?"

Edna pressed her lips together disapprovingly.

"It's pretty obvious how it happened," she said, "After all, I was young once too."

C.J. felt a blush slip through her face.

"I…"

"We take check or credit card," Edna said, simply, "You can work out your payment arrangements with the clerk on your way out and this transgression need go no further."

C.J. watched as Edna unlocked the records room door and then left, shaking her head.

She walked into the room and flipped on the switch. Looking around the room, she thought something was different besides the new table which just as Edna said, looked a lot like the old one. She walked towards the rows of boxes in the back of the room. But when she turned into one aisle, she didn't see several of the boxes but instead, empty spaces marking where she and Matt had left them.

"Damn," she said, knowing that they had been removed. Probably by Kilroy or his men or by one of their sympathizers at City Hall. She turned to leave the room to take up the issue with Edna when she ran into Sydney.

"Watch it," Sydney said, "I'm wearing a new suit and I've got coffee."

C.J. looked at her.

"What's the special occasion?"

Sydney smiled.

"Oh there are some daily news shows that are flying out to Silver Lode to check out what's been going on here."

C.J. brightened.

"Oh you mean about the ranchers' Fight to preserve their way of life.

"No, actually to meet the sexiest man in Silver Lode."

That news startled C.J.

"What the hell," she said, "Why would they fly out here for that?"

"Oh, my story went out on the wire as soon as it came off the press," Sydney said, "I think it has something to do with that article he did for PEOPLE last year."

C.J. ran her hand through her hair.

"Aren't you happy for Matt," Sydney said, "I mean, he's really sexy and this could mean more national exposure for him."

C.J. felt fairly sure how Matt would react to that kind of exposure.

"Sure I'm happy for him," she said, "But that's not the kind of attention he likes."

Sydney nodded.

"Yeah, he's a bit squirrely to the media I noticed," she said, "But he shouldn't let it stop him."

"He doesn't like to be in the spotlight for what he does," C.J. said, "He just likes helping people, not the attention."

"Yeah well, they're on their way here," Sydney said, "Then there's that girlfriend thing."

C.J. tilted her head.

"What girlfriend thing?"

Sydney sipped her coffee.

"He's not actually a bachelor after all," she said, "He says he's got a girlfriend and that only she can get him to take his shirt off."

C.J. suppressed her smile.

"And when did he say this, about the girlfriend?"

Sydney shrugged.

"When I hit on him at the end of the interview," she said, "Which I admit that I did…a little but he's such a good looking guy and that smile…"

"Yeah I know…," C.J. said, "Why did you hit on him?"

"Why not," Sydney said, "The opportunity was there."

"But you break their hearts," C.J. said, "Like you did Joe's."

Sydney's face darkened.

"Oh that," she said, "Well, I had to get the story and getting close…"

"…to your subject is the best way to do it," C.J. finished.

"Well yes of course," Sydney said, "and it's worked very well so far… except with Matt."

"Lucky for you," C.J. said, "Because I don't take kindly to people who hurt my best friend."

Sydney raised her brows.

"I can see that," she said, "I imagine you must make his girlfriend very nervous."

"What…"

"Well, you two spend so much time together," Sydney said, "Here…in Denver…and she's nowhere around. Makes you wonder what she's thinking."

C.J. rubbed the back of her neck. Suddenly the door opened and they both looked up and saw Nick.

"Excuse me," C.J. said, trying to push past Sydney.

"Avoiding me," Nick asked as he looked at both women.

"Not me Nick," Sydney said, "In fact, I need a quote from you for my story."

"You can call my office," Nick said, "Wait a minute, you're doing a story on such a complicated issue as land development?"

Sydney didn't like his tone.

"Excuse me," she said, "I'm a damn good reporter on any issue, even those much more complicated than what's going on with your firm."

"I must have hit a sore spot," he said, smiling, "That wasn't my intention at all. I would love to talk with you anytime, anywhere on this or any other land deal."

"Well, I'll leave you two alone then," C.J. said, picking up her things.

"Don't leave on my account," Nick said. "I know that we're on opposite sides of the court professionally speaking."

"And that's all there is," She said, trying to squeeze past them.

He blocked her way.

"Come on, why don't you join me and Sydney for our interview," he said.

Sydney looked at him.

"So you're agreeing to an interview," she said, reaching for her palm pilot, "We can schedule right now and avoid our middlemen at the office."

"Sure," Nick said, "I'm free evenings. You can find me at the local watering hole."

"That works," Sydney said.

"Okay," he said, "How about tomorrow night?"

Sydney smiled.

"Sure," she said, "I'll see you then."

He nodded.

"Goodbye ladies," he said, "always good to see you C.J."

She didn't respond back. After Nick left, she turned to Sydney.

"Do you know what you're letting yourself into," C.J. said, "That guy's a snake."

"He's an interview for a story," Sydney said, "The one that you and Matt wanted me to write so I'm writing it."

"But…"

"I've got to get back to the office and check my messages," Sydney said, "I got a slew of them by the time I arrived in the office, all about Matt."

"That's nice," C.J. said, "But be careful of Nick. He might be dangerous."

* * *

Matt rode out with Reed and Jed to talk to the ranchers who were standing guard on the Wyatt and Flynn properties. Nothing out of the ordinary had happened during their shifts, they all reported.

"Do you think that they're going to be targets," Jed asked.

"I don't know," Matt said, "I'm not sure where Kilroy and his thugs are going to hit back. I just know that they're going to do it."

"They've been pretty ruthless so far," Jed said, "I think you're right about this really being more about mining than developing the land out here."

"And if they found rich veins of some ore like silver or even gold out here, then that would set them up for life."

"Just the thought of it," Jed said, shaking his head, "like gold fever back in the 1800s."

Matt reined in Whiskey when they reached the meadow to stop for lunch.

"I don't like C.J. being caught in the middle of all this," he said.

"She's doing what she wants to do," Jed reminded him, "You know how much that means to her."

"I know that," Matt said, "and we've both faced enough danger on the job, but…"

"It's different when it's the woman that you love."

Matt turned around to look at Jed.

"Well yeah…I think it is," he said, "It's always been hard when something bad has happened to her because of what we do, but this is different."

Jed dismounted his horse by the grove of trees.

"I know it is," Jed said, "But you're going to have to find a way to deal with the dangers of your jobs without making her feel smothered."

"We do pretty well in that area," Matt said, "It's difficult in situations like this one where the stakes are high in the minds of some pretty determined men."

"Well, there's some very determined people on the other side," Jed said, "And we're not about to let anything happen to our way of life or anyone who speaking out for us."

* * *

"Dangerous," Sydney said, "Surely, you're exaggerating."

C.J. shook her head.

"I'm not," she said, "Nick's the man who's been making phone threats to me and he assaulted me at the diner that night."

Sydney folded her arms.

"You said he assaulted you. He said you came on to him. There are two different accounts of one event."

C.J. fought to control her temper then sighed.

"I'm just warning you that's all," C.J. said, "What you do with my words is up to you."

They left the room.

"So where you headed," Sydney asked.

"To meet some of my friends who flew in for the wedding," C.J. said.

Sydney's radar zeroed in on one word.

"Wedding," she said, "Who's getting married? Anyone I know?"

"Thea's son, Jonathan is marrying a friend of mine, Rhonda."

"I didn't hear anything about Jonathan doing the deed," Sydney said, "What a shock."

"Why is it so surprising," C.J. said, "Wait a minute, don't tell me that Jonathan…"

"It was just a short interlude in both of our lives," Sydney said, searching her purse for her notepad, "Not that it wasn't memorable."

"You better not tell Rhonda about it," C.J. said.

"So when's the main event?"

"Next week," C.J. said, "Although there's some events that are being held before the main event."

"Like a bachelorette party?"

C.J. looked at her surprised.

"Well yes," she said, "How did you know it?"

Sydney started scribbling in her notepad.

"If there's a wedding going on, then there's a bachelorette party," Sydney said, "not to mention a bachelor's party."

"Yes, usually that's the case," C.J. said, "Though you'll have to talk to Jonathan about the men's party."

Sydney wrote some more in her pad.

"Can I meet your friends," Sydney asked, "I have some time and besides, this wedding might make excellent copy."

C.J. hesitated.

"Well okay," she said, "I'm on my way there now."

So they continued walking to the diner with C.J. wondering what she had just gotten her friends and herself into bringing Sydney into the fold.

"Oh, I talked to Edna about that broken table," Sydney said.

"Oh really."

"And the latest is, that there's no arrests so far in the assault committed against the table here," Sydney said.

C.J. nodded.

"That's a good outcome," she said, "first time offenders should be treated lightly by the system."

Sydney looked at C.J. puzzled, but C.J. just smiled.

* * *

Matt and Jed headed back to the barn, after eating lunch.

"It's going to be interesting to see what the appellate judge rules on Kilroy's appeal," Jed said.

"That could be several years from now," Matt said, "In the meantime, I better get back in touch with Kent to see when he's sending in reinforcements to carry out the will of the district court."

"I hope that's the case," Jed said, "because eventually the ranchers will have to focus back on their own properties."

Matt nodded.

"Hopefully, it won't be too much longer."

Jed couldn't argue with that.

"So what do you think about the wedding?"

Matt shortened the rein on Whiskey.

"I didn't know Jonathan and Rhonda were that serious," Matt said, "But then I've not been in Houston lately so I'm probably a couple steps behind on what's been going on."

"So you heading back to L.A. when you and C.J. are finished here?"

Matt hesitated.

"I've got to check on my business to make sure it's still running smoothly," he said.

"But you've got capable employees making sure of that don't you?"

Matt nodded.

"Yeah, I've got some great employees," he said, "So after I check the business, I'm going to leave them to run it for a while and I'm going to Houston."

"When did you make that decision?"

"I think I made it a while ago and couldn't admit it to myself," he said, "The bottom line is that I have a business out in L.A. but C.J. has a life she's rebuilt for herself in Houston that she really needs right now."

"She's worked really hard to get her life back, after what's happened to her."

"I know that," Matt said, "And I want to share that with her. I do know that I don't want to be living in some city 2,000 miles away."

Jed nodded.

"So what are you going to do when you're there?"

"I'm thinking of starting another business in Houston," he said, "I love the work I do, but I think I need to change my focus a bit. I'm still trying to figure out how exactly to do that."

"You will," Jed said, "and then you'll build a new life together just as it should be."

* * *

C.J. and Sydney entered the diner to see Chris and Rhonda sitting in a booth. Rhonda stared at them.

"What the hell is she doing here?"


	30. Chapter 30

Chapter 30--Here's my next chapter. Sorry it's been so long but I've been sick and unfortunately one of the symptoms is vertigo, so that might slow me down a bit for a while. Hope you enjoy it and thanks as always for the comments!

* * *

Sydney shrunk from Rhonda's warning but only for a few seconds.

"I'm here because I heard you're getting married to Jonathan and I think it will make a great series of articles that my readers will enjoy," she said.

Rhonda's jaw dropped.

"What the hell are you talking about," she said, then turned towards C.J., "How did this home wrecker find out that I'm getting married?"

C.J. shrugged.

"It kind of slipped out," she said, "The whole town probably has heard about it by now anyway. What's one more person?"

Rhonda gritted her teeth.

"What she hasn't told you is that she used to have a thing for Jonathan when she wrote about him getting that commendation from the attorney general."

"Actually, I did tell her," Sydney said, "I have nothing to hide in my background."

C.J. looked at Sydney closely.

"Doesn't she have a thing for most of the men she writes about?"

"She broke his heart," Rhonda protested.

Chris looked at C.J, confusion on her face.

"I thought you did," she said, "after you dumped him when he came back from Quantico."

C.J. shook her head.

"Things were already over between us by then," she said, "Besides that took place after our fight over the weekend I spent in Malibu with Houston."

Sydney's eyebrows shot up.

"You were one of Jonathan's ex-flames too," she said, "Oh this is perfect. The first article in my series will be Jonathan the groom surrounded by his ex-girlfriends who have all come together so that the luckiest one can walk down the aisle with him."

"This isn't _Bachelor_, Sydney," Rhonda said, "This is my wedding."

"But it will make a great series of articles," Sydney said, "We can even send it out over the wire."

"So are you going to include yourself in this series of stories," Rhonda asked.

Sydney shook her head.

"Of course not," she said, "A reporter can't become part of her story."

Rhonda laughed derisively.

"It's a bit late for that, don't you think?"

"Look, I'd love to stay and chat with you," Sydney said, "But I've got a deadline and I've got to draft a proposal for this great idea. I'll contact you all when I start working on it."

She turned around to leave and collided with a middle-aged man dressed in black.

"Excuse me…Rev. Blakely," she said.

"Hello Sydney," he said, "I have to tell you I loved that article you did on our church's new organ."

Sydney smiled.

"No problem," she said, "I really enjoyed that tour you gave me of the underground catacombs. Fascinating that we had a history of smugglers in our little town during Prohibition. Who would have thought?"

Chris and Rhonda looked at each other.

"Indeed," he said, "Ironic that they used the House of God as one of the stations."

"Very much so," Sydney agreed, "See you later."

They all watched her go and then Blakely cleared his throat.

"All right, which one of you here is the bride?"

* * *

Matt and Jed ran into Thea in the kitchen. When she saw them arrive, she shook her head.

"You should see the list of people who called the ranch today," she said, "Half of them want to know when their invitations to this wedding are going to be in the mail and the other half…"

Jed smiled.

"I wager those are young women calling for our celebrity bachelor here," he said.

Thea nodded.

"There were young women, older women even some grandmothers calling," Thea said, "not that there's anything wrong with that but I think I'm going to need an answering service to field them all."

Matt felt chagrined.

"I'm sorry about this," he said, "I had no idea."

"Don't blame yourself Matt," Thea said, "It'll die down in a few days."

"How did you handle that _PEOPLE _article when it came out," Jed said, getting them each a beer.

"I had a group of receptionists shielding me from those calls," Matt said, "And now I feel like I owe them all apologies."

"You don't have to return the calls," Jed said.

"What is there to say to them," Matt said, "I told Sydney I was involved with someone and wasn't available."

"That part must have ended up on the cutting room floor," Jed said, dryly.

"How's C.J. handling this whole situation," Thea asked.

"She thinks it's a good thing," he said, "that the women in the world know that men like me exist."

"She's right," Thea said, "and it really will all die down in a few days."

"I hope so," Matt said, "I thought I was going to have to leave L.A. after the _PEOPLE_ story."

"So how are things going with the injunction," Thea asked.

"The ranchers are doing fine on the two properties," Jed said, "No problems so far."

Thea sighed.

"Let's hope it stays that way," she said, "and that there's no violence. We've seen more than enough of that already."

* * *

"I'm going to need some ice cream," Chris sighed, sitting back in her seat the diner, "I think I'll order one of those banana splits."

Rhonda nodded her head.

"Make it a double," she said, "Do you think it's a good sign when the minister who's supposed to preside over your wedding makes such a quick exit?"

C.J. patted Rhonda's hand.

"I think he just wants to have the rest of the discussion in his office with Jonathan there," C.J. said, "When's he coming into town anyway?"

"Hopefully before the wedding," Rhonda said.

Chris and C.J. looked at her more closely.

"He does know that you're both getting married doesn't he?"

Rhonda snorted.

"Of course he does," she said, "Where do you think I got this ring?"

"Hey, just checking," Chris said.

"He's got some job interviews to wrap up," Rhonda said, "including some government positions."

"I thought he was fed up with all that," Chris said.

"He's rethinking his commitment to the private sector," Rhonda said, "I don't care what he does, as long as it makes him happy."

C.J. sipped her cola.

"Jonathan's not all that complicated," she said, "He gets his fulfillment from helping people and catching bad guys."

Rhonda nodded.

"That's why I think he's thinking about going back to the federal government," she said, "We talked a lot about it on our road trip but he hadn't made a decision."

"So he is coming in, isn't he," Chris asked.

"Of course he is," Rhonda retorted, "Probably in the next day or so."

C.J. looked at her watch.

"I've got to get going," she said, "I've got to track down some records at City Hall that are missing."

"Missing," Chris said, "How could that be?"

"They were there when Houston and I were looking at them the other day," C.J. said, "But when I went back today, there were some missing."

"So someone took them," Chris said, "Do you think it's the opposition?"

"Wouldn't surprise me," C.J. said, "But I'm going to check with the clerk's office."

"Would you like some company?"

C.J. thought about it then shook her head.

"I'm fine," she said, "Besides I've got to pay the clerk for some broken furniture."

Rhonda raised her brow.

"How'd you wind up breaking furniture?"

"It was an accident," C.J. said, "But they had to replace it and they're sending me the bill."

"Why you?"

"I guess they think I had something to do with it," C.J. said.

"Did you and a certain someone?," Rhonda asked, smiling.

C.J. ran her hand through her hair.

"I'm not answering that question as to not potentially incriminate myself," she said.

Rhonda picked up her things.

"I'm definitely going with you," she said, "to keep you from breaking anymore furniture of course."

C.J. shrugged.

"Do you want to come Chris," she asked.

"No, I think I'll stop by and talk with Bonnie at the store," Chris said, "She's got Butterfly helping her stock shelves today."

"Okay, see you in a while," C.J. said as she and Rhonda left for City Hall.

* * *

Matt headed into town with Jed.

"So you and Bonnie working on the wedding?"

Jed looked out the window.

"Bonnie's working on finding the musicians and some of the other details," he said, "She's having a lot of fun with it."

Matt smiled.

"She's very good at organizing those phone trees," he said, "She can turn a huge crowd out on a dime."

Jed nodded.

"We're a very tight-knit bunch in the valley," he said, "We have to be because ranching can be a very dangerous way to make a living. Very rewarding but it has its hazards."

"It was like that when I was growing up," Matt said, "Both C.J. and I spent most of our lives on ranches in Texas so we know what it's like."

"Is that where you met?"

Matt chuckled.

"No, we met at school actually," he said, "It was her first day and she spent most of it in the principal's office."

"What happened?"

"She punched the class bully out for calling her parentage into question," he said, "She had a mean right hook back then. It's only gotten better since."

"I noticed," Jed said.

"So she got suspended for a week and spent it working on her uncle's ranch," Matt said, "I caught her at my fishing hole one day and she stood her ground. We've been friends ever since."

"She thinks the world of you," Jed said, "but I guess you know that."

Matt nodded.

"I do," he said, "And the feeling's mutual."

"Then that's what's important here," Jed said, "not this circus."

* * *

C.J. and Rhonda walked down the street towards City Hall.

"So what do you think happened to the missing records," Rhonda asked.

"I don't know," C.J. said, "I would say Kilroy or his men took them but that would be very stupid."

"From what little I've seen of them," Rhonda said, "They don't impress me as very bright individuals."

They walked up the stairs to the entrance of the building and went inside. C.J. headed to the clerk's office bypassing Edna who stood guard over the room housing the city's public records as she always did.

"I've got to pay for that furniture," C.J. said, "and maybe the clerk will know where the records are if they were removed by someone here."

Rhonda shrugged.

"I'm just along for the ride," she said, "I want to change my perceptions of how these small-town governments really work."

"They're not all like Bannon County," C.J. said.

"I know but some of them are pretty close," Rhonda said.

The clerk, a young woman with red hair and freckles came out to help them. She shook her head when C.J. inquired about the location of the missing records after she paid for the broken table.

"To the best of my knowledge, they should still be there," the clerk said, "There was no order to remove them for any reason."

"That's what I thought," C.J. said.

"Did you ask Edna about it?"

C.J. sighed.

"Not yet," she said, "I probably should do that next."

"We'd better get going then," Rhonda said.

C.J. and Rhonda went over to the desk where Edna sat, reading one of her novels. She looked at them, a bit sternly.

"Two of you wanting to see those files now?"

Rhonda threw up her hands.

"Don't look at me, honey, "she said, "I'm just following her."

C.J. looked at Edna, trying to find the best way to approach this issue.

"Actually, I was in here the other day," she said, "and I noticed some of the files were missing."

Edna put down her novel, straightened her glasses and looked at the two women.

"What did you just say?"

C.J. tried again.

"I just told you that I went into the records room and noticed that some of the files were missing from the boxes."

"They were there when I left them the previous day," Edna said, looking confused.

"They were gone when I went looking for them," C.J. insisted, "Do you know if anyone moved them?"

Edna just looked at her.

"If that were to happen, I would have been informed just like I was when the table got broken," she said, "We'll just go and have a look to see if they're really missing."

C.J. folded her arms.

"Okay, let's go right ahead," she said.

The three of them entered into the records room. C.J. and Rhonda followed Edna back to the shelves where the records were kept and watched her search futilely for them. Edna scratched her head as if she couldn't believe that any records could have walked out of the room on her watch.

"I can see you were right," Edna said, finally, "They are indeed gone."

C.J. and Rhonda looked at each other.

"I guess I'm going to have to give Sheriff Daniels a call so he can come out and take a report," Edna said.

"Have you searched the building yet," C.J. said, "Maybe you should do that before you bring in Daniels and his reinforcements."

Edna just looked at her.

"No one in this building would have dared touch those files without telling me first," she said, shaking her head.

C.J. gave it some thought.

"Has anyone else been in here besides us?"

Edna almost shook her head and then stopped herself.

"Wait a minute," she said, holding up her index finger, "There might have been someone."

C.J. looked at Rhonda.

"Who," she asked.

Edna thought for a moment, then her face brightened.

"Why that charming gentleman with the smart suits," she said, "Kilroy, I think's his name."

C.J. groaned inwardly at the mention of his name and knew that in all probability, those records would never been seen again.

* * *

Jed and Matt entered Bonnie's store and saw Chris and Butterfly sitting with Bonnie and talking over glasses of ice tea and cake. All three of them looked up when the men entered the room.

"What are you doing here," Bonnie asked.

"We're going to meet with Daniels to see if he's come up with anything on the investigations he's supposed to be doing," Jed said.

"That should be a short conversation," Bonnie noted.

"We don't expect to be there very long," Matt said.

"So when you get that ordeal with, then what?"

"I'll guess I'll be heading back home," Jed said, "What about you Matt?"

"I'll be meeting C.J. here," he said, "She is still in town?"

Chris nodded.

"She and Rhonda went to City Hall to track down those missing records."

Matt nodded.

"I'll bet Kilroy or one of his buddies knows where they are," he said.

"Were they important," Chris asked.

"They were pretty critical to finding out and being able to prove what Kilroy and his men were really up to with these development deals."

"Are there other ways to do that?"

"Yeah Chris," Matt said, "But it's going to take us a bit longer to find out how to do that."

"Maybe the documents didn't leave City Hall," Chris said, "Maybe they're hidden inside the building."

Matt nodded.

"You could be right," he said, "We have to find out who in the 'Hall is tied to Kilroy, Nick or Parker."

Bonnie snorted.

"That doesn't eliminate that many people," she said, "though it could have been someone who's trying to protect them."

"You mean keep them away from Kilroy and his buddies rather than handing them over?"

Bonnie nodded.

"I never thought of that," Matt admitted," That's something definitely worth checking out."

* * *

C.J. left City Hall with Rhonda, not sure what to do next.

"So you think Kilroy and his men waltzed right in and out of there with those records under Bonnie's nose?"

C.J. shook her head.

"I have a hard time believing Edna would miss anything that took place in her presence," C.J. said, "Maybe she left for a short period of time."

"That's not likely if the woman takes her job as seriously as she seems to," Rhonda said.

"You're probably right," C.J. said, "But somehow Kilroy and his men did get their hands on them and now we won't be able to find out why they're so important."

"Are you sure they're the only copies?"

C.J. shrugged.

"They're not," she said, "But they're probably the only copies that are accessible, unless we can find out who the property owners were on the pre-sale assessments. The ones which weren't altered."

"So are you going to do that," Rhonda said.

"Only if I have to," C.J. said, then looked at Rhonda, "But I have a wedding to help organize too."

"Like I said, C.J., Thea, Bonnie and I are handling all the tough duties," Rhonda said, "I might need you for a function here and there…like the bachelorette party."

"I thought you were rethinking your decision to have one because there's a scarcity of male strippers in these parts," C.J. said.

"Thea said she might know where to find one who will be willing to make a few women very happy for a few hours," Rhonda said, "I hope he's not a proud member of the Geriatric Association of Male Strippers."

"Why don't you try Chris' suggestion and just hold a spa night?"

Rhonda folded her arms and sighed.

"You two are such puritans," she said, "You think that this a ritual where unenlightened women have fun at a man's expense but it's not like that at all."

C.J. held up her hands.

"Hey, I didn't say any of that," she said, "I did say I'd stand right beside you for everything…including the bachelorette party."

Rhonda stopped walking.

"Why don't you ask Matt…"

"Forget it, Rhonda," C.J. snapped.

"You're really into that guy, aren't you?"

C.J. remained silent then smiled.

"You could say that," she said, "It's not that I'm trying to hide anything let alone my feelings for Houston but it's just taking some time to figure it all out as wonderful as it all is."

"That's the lawyer in you," Rhonda said, "You've got to get that side of you to just sit down and shut up once in a while."

C.J. chuckled.

"Maybe you're right," she said, "but it sure isn't easy."

They heard footsteps and looked up to see Sydney heading towards them. Both of them suppressed a groan.

"Should we try to make a quick escape," Rhonda said.

"No use," C.J. said, "Besides she's really got it into her head that she's going to turn your nuptials into a reality show."

"No way in hell I'm going to let that happen," Rhonda said.

Sydney saw them and smiled.

"Too late," Rhonda said with a sigh.

"Don't worry, she's pretty harmless," C.J. said, "once you get to know here."

"No thanks, I think I'll pass."

"Hey, what's going on here," Sydney asked after reaching them.

C.J. and Rhonda looked at each other.

"Nothing," Rhonda shrugged.

"How did your meeting with the reverend go?"

Rhonda signed, not wanting to go down that road.

"Fine," she said, quickly, "How's things at the paper?"

Sydney brightened.

"The edition with the article on Matt sold out in a couple of hours," she said, "It's off for a second printing."

"That's great," Rhonda exclaimed, turning towards C.J., "Isn't it C.J.?"

"Sure," C.J. said, "It's really great."

"I bet Matt's is overwhelmed with phone calls even as we speak," Syndey said, "The price of success."

Rhonda rolled her eyes.

"He'll tell those women where to park it, nicely of course because he is a gentleman but his heart belongs to…"

"Who," Sydney asked, "He mentioned that he was seeing someone but didn't say much about her."

Rhonda looked at C.J.

"Oh, she's an incredible woman," Rhonda said, "Beautiful, sexy…mysterious."

C.J. just looked away.

"So where does this woman live," Sydney said.

"She's from out of state," Rhonda said, "And she's too busy to be involved in the entertainment media scene."

C.J. knew that Rhonda's choice of words hadn't been a wise one when she saw Sydney's eyebrows shoot straight up.

"Entertainment media," Sydney said, "I'll have you know I'm a professional news writing journalist."

Rhonda waved her hand.

"Oh yeah we know," she said, "but have you ever seen Woodward or Bernstein get so personally attached to their subjects?"

"Well no," Sydney admitted, "But I love my work, I love my subjects. Wait, I don't mean that the way it sounded."

Both C.J. and Rhonda laughed.

"What's so funny," Sydney asked.

Rhonda looked at her before shaking her head.

"Oh…never mind," she said.

C.J. looked up.

"Hey Sydney, do you like bachelorette parties?"

Sydney looked from one to the other a bit wary.

"Why do you ask?"

C.J. smiled.

"Rhonda's planning hers and she needs some help," she said, "She needs to find a stripper."

"Oh, I thought you were going to ask me something that was really difficult…"

Rhonda raised a brow at C.J.

"You know where we can find one," Rhonda said.

Sydney nodded.

"For the right price," she said.

"Well yeah sure, we didn't expect him to strip for free," Rhonda said, "We do realize this is a profession."

"I'm not talking about him," Sydney said.

Rhonda widened her eyes.

"What," she said, "You want us to pay you?"

C.J. looked at Sydney.

"I didn't know journalism paid that poorly," she said as they prepared to walk away.

"No, no, that's not what I meant," Sydney said, "I just want to be able to bring in a camera man and film it as part of a series of articles on your wedding."

"But I thought you were doing stories for the newspapers," Rhonda said, "Why do you need the video?"

"For the online edition of course," Sydney said.

"Get out of town," Rhonda said, "why would anyone be interested in viewing my bachelorette party?"

"The article on Matt just sold out," Sydney said, "So obviously there's an audience for out of town visitors, what their lives are like and where they play."

Rhonda thought about it a minute.

"I'll have to think about it," she said, "We'll get back to you."

"Sure," Sydney said, "You know where to reach me."

Sydney walked away and Rhonda looked at her.

"Can you believe that," she said, "Wanting to videotape my bachelorette party for the readers of her magazines to enjoy."

"This is the age of internet news," C.J. said, "But I don't blame you for having second thoughts. I don't think I'd want some people with a camera show up at my bachelorette party."

Rhonda furrowed her brows.

"What do you mean your bachelorette party," she said, "Are you and Matt…"

C.J. gasped.

"Certainly not," she said, "We're not getting married or anything like that. We've just gotten together."

"Yeah, but you were 'together' for years," Rhonda said, "being best friends and all."

"That's different," C.J. said, "At least I think so."

"Sure," Rhonda said, "But if you ask me, he always had a thing for you. I remember how he stormed into Piser's ranch risking his life to save yours. He wouldn't let anyone or anything stop him. I never was ever so impressed by a member of the male sex. "

C.J. looked at Rhonda.

"He wanted to save everyone," she said.

Rhonda nodded.

"True, but who did he wind up taking home?"

* * *

Matt and Jed entered Daniels' office after Tammy, the deputy told them to follow her. Daniels sat in his chair next to his desk, which was piled with files and other papers.

"What might I help you with, gentlemen?"

Matt looked at the sheriff.

"We're here for an update on the investigation into the accident involving C.J. Parsons and the other two members of the legal team."

"And…"

"It's been over a week," Matt said, "Surely you must have made some progress."

Daniels swiveled in his chair, picking up a file from the pile of them.

"Oh that one," he said, perusing its contents, "It's been ruled an accident."

Jed and Matt looked at each other.

"You're kidding right," Jed said, "Did you check the vehicle for any forensic evidence like paint chips?"

Daniels sighed.

"You must take me for a country bumpkin, but I assure you I'm not," Daniels said, "We did a thorough and very professional investigation and we looked into every little detail of that accident."

"Like what," Matt asked.

"Everything that we found onscene," Daniels said, "We were left with the conclusion after reviewing the evidence that the accident happened when the young gentleman fell asleep in his car and drove off the side of the road. It was late at night, it happens."

"It didn't happen this time," Matt said, "So you didn't look for forensics or do you not know what that word means?"

Daniels' face turned red.

"You listen here," he said, "How dare you question our professionalism. We completed a very complicated process which wasn't helped by Ms Parsons' unwillingness to give an eyewitness account."

"She tried to tell you what happened," Matt said, "but you didn't listen. Just like you didn't listen when she received phone threats and got her windshield smashed."

Daniels waved his arm.

"Pranks done by children who lack a firm hand and with too much time on their hands."

"I doubt that," Matt said, "but we both know that you don't want to get to the truth here because if you did, you might have to look harder at the folks lining your wallet."

Daniels jumped out of his chair.

"Hey…"

Suddenly a deputy ran in.

"What is it, deputy Lindsey?"

The deputy looked around the room.

"There's a disturbance outside," he said.

Daniels sighed and stood up.

"I've got to handle this," he said, "But this isn't finished."

Matt stood up and glared at him.

"You better believe it's not."

Daniels just shook his head, leavin the office.


	31. Chapter 31

Chapter 31----Hi, here's another chapter, I hope you like it and thanks for reading my stories and for your comments!

* * *

Jed looked at Matt.

"Where you do you think they're running off towards?"

"I haven't the faintest idea," Matt said, "but it's probably not out in the pursuit of justice."

Jed sighed, looking around at Daniels' chaotic office.

"Maybe I should think of running for sheriff," he said, "What a mess."

Matt's brows lifted.

"You'd have my vote," he said, "Maybe you should give it some serious thought."

"I might just do that," Jed said, "Well, we better get ourselves on out of here before they find some reason to arrest us."

Both of them left Daniels' office and exited the building. It didn't take them long to see what the fuss was about that had caused Daniels to run out of his office. One of the deputies had been treed by a huge goat.

"Don't shoot him," a voice rang out, "I've got the ASPCA on speed dial."

"If he doesn't back away from this tree so I can come down, I will resort to using deadly force," the deputy said.

"One move and I'm pushing the button," Butterfly shouted.

"Butterfly, no one's going to hurt the goat," Chris said, "Any police man worth his salt can resolve this situation without resorting to using force against an innocent little creature."

"He'd better not," Butterfly said, holding her cell phone out like a weapon.

Matt and Jed walked up, unable to believe what they were seeing. Ahead of them stood Daniels who scratched his head and Deputy Tammy who just watched the goat trying to climb up the tree.

"Time to send out the SWAT Team," Jed asked with a glint of amusement in his eyes.

Daniels just glared at them.

"Not another word out of either one of you or I'll arrest you for the delaying and obstruction of a police operation," he said.

Both Matt and Jed suppressed smiles. Sydney and Joseph walked up carrying their equipment and when Daniels saw them, he groaned and tried to head them off at the pass.

"No cameras please," Daniels said, "This is a very serious situation and we all need to remain calm."

Sydney folded her arms.

"We live in a free society," she said, "and you can't interfere with freedom of the press."

"We can restrict their access to crime scenes for their own safety," Daniels said.

Sydney threw up her arms.

"Where's the crime scene here," she said, "Did the goat accost the deputy? Did it jaywalk?"

Bonnie shook her head in response.

"He's hung around for the past couple of days and hasn't stolen anything," she said, "He's kind of cute. Reminds me of an ex-boyfriend with that rakish beard he's got going there. "

"He's adorable," Butterfly agreed, "He's also kind of edgy. I might need him for one of my movies."

Rhonda and C.J. had wandered over to see what had attracted a crowd. Chris looked at her friends approaching and smiled.

"Hey Rhonda, he'd make an excellent ring boy for your wedding, don't you think?"

Rhonda studied the goat which had his two front hooves resting against the tree trunk as he looked up at the deputy.

"Too tall," Rhonda said, "but he looks distinguished."

Sydney and Joseph with his camera inched closer to the goat.

"Be careful," C.J. warned.

The goat with its impressive horns turned and looked at the two of them and the expression on its face convinced them they should retreat.

Daniels sighed.

"I guess I'd better call in reinforcements," he said, taking out his radio.

C.J. approached him.

"Wait, I'll get the goat," she said.

Daniels put down his radio and glared at her.

"You'll step back lady or face arrest," he said.

"Been there, done that," C.J. said, "I'm good with stubborn old coots and four legged creatures."

Rhonda looked at Daniels and nodded.

"Your deputy could stay up in that tree all day of course," Rhonda said, "and since the press is here now, I don't think you want to get caught on videotape killing such a poor innocent creature."

Matt stepped forward.

"I will vouch for this lady's ability to talk anyone down from a tree or anywhere else for that matter," he offered.

C.J. looked at him and smiled.

"I can give it my best shot," she said, "Pun not intended of course."

Daniels looked at Deputy Tammy, who shrugged.

"I think these ladies here have made their point," she said, "Nothing lost by letting them try it."

Daniels threw up his hands.

"Okay, you've got five minutes," he said.

C.J. brushed off her hands and walked towards the goat slowly and quietly. Both Butterfly and Joseph trailed her with videocameras while Sydney provided commentary in her microphone.

"Shhhhh," C.J. said, her finger on her lips.

Sydney nodded and whispered into her microphone instead.

As C.J. neared the goat, it leisurely turned its head away from its victim and looked at her. She smiled and held up her hand slowly.

"I'm not going to hurt you big guy," she said, "But these awfully impatient men behind me will if you don't walk away."

The goat bit up a tuft of grass and listened to her.

"The guy up in the tree's not really worth all this trouble," C.J. said, inching closer until she squatted near the goat and extended her fingers for him to sniff.

The goat sniffed her fingers and just gazed at her. She looked back towards the crowd.

"I need a rope," she said.

Matt went to get one.

"You're not a bad looking guy at all," C.J. told the goat as she gingerly patted his head. He butted her with his head and she scratched his ears.

She heard Matt approach slowly with the rope and hand it to her.

"There, this isn't going to be that bad," she said, "Your owner's probably missing you right now."

The goat shot his head up at that but C.J. had slipped the rope around his neck and tightened it a bit. She turned to Matt and smiled.

"He's all yours," she said.

Matt patted the goat who rewarded him by butting him in the side.

"Ouch," he said, "He could pack quite a wallop if he wanted."

C.J. rolled her eyes.

"This charmer wouldn't hurt a fly," she said, scratching his ears, "That just means he likes you. He's got good taste."

Matt handed the rope to a young man who led the goat away.

"You can come on down now," Matt said to the deputy still up in the tree, "So whose goat is it anyway?"

"Old man Weezer's got a bunch of them on the other side of town," Deputy Tammy said, "Names them after the seven dwarves. This must be Doc."

C.J. shook her head.

"I don't see the resemblance," she said.

She and Matt started walking away from the tree.

"You're quite a piece of work Ms Parsons," Matt said, putting his arm around her shoulders.

She leaned her head against him.

"Thank you Mr. Houston," she said, "You're quite an impressive specimen yourself."

They joined the others who were being interviewed by Sydney over what they had just witnessed.

"So did you ever find those missing files," Matt asked.

C.J. shook her head.

"No luck," she said, "Even Edna didn't have a clue where they'd gone."

"Do you really need them?"

C.J. scratched her head.

"Maybe," she said, "Maybe not but there won't be any reviewing them today."

Matt's face brightened.

"Then you have some spare time then," he said.

She looked at him, puzzled.

"Yes…Maybe, did you have anything in mind?"

"I'd like to take you to lunch," he said.

"At the diner?"

He shook his head.

"At the ridge," he said, "We'll get some things to eat and go out and enjoy the scenery."

Her face felt warm.

"That sounds like a plan," she said, taking his hand in her own.

Rhonda looked at them.

"Where you all going," she asked.

C.J. looked back at her.

"To lunch," she said.

"But we still have to plan the party," Rhonda said.

"I know, but Sydney's going to get us the stripper so no need to worry about that part," C.J. said, "Besides I'll be back."

Rhonda looked at both of them.

"Yeah right," she said.

Matt raised his brow.

"Sydney's going to get Rhonda a stripper?"

C.J. sighed.

"Long story," she said, "Let's go."

* * *

As they hiked up the side of the mountain to the ridge, C.J. explained the day's events to Matt and he told her that Daniels and his agency had classified the car crash that had nearly taken three lives as an accident.

C.J. sighed at that news.

"Hardly surprising," she said, "I doubt they even did a serious investigation."

Matt nodded.

"He didn't seem to mention much about any forensics evidence being tested so you're probably right," he said, "But then again, Daniels' pockets are probably lined by the people who set up that so-called accident."

C.J. looked away and sadness laced her voice.

"It's not me that I'm concerned about," she said, "It's Jason and Maggie who've worked so hard on this case and it will be months before Jason can even go back to his career."

Matt squeezed her hand.

"He will go back when he's ready," Matt said, "He seemed pretty determined to me when I met him."

C.J. smiled.

"I'm glad that at least it brought him and Maggie closer together," she said, "She really cares very much for him."

They reached the ridge and gazed out over the impressive vista all the way to the horizon.

"It's so beautiful," she said, about the breath-taking view and mixtures of colors below them.

"Not as beautiful as you."

She turned and looked at him and the expression on his face made her breathless. She covered herself with a smile.

"I think I'll put the food down over here," she said.

He grabbed her arm and she found herself kissing him as he ran his hands over her back. She stepped back after a moment, eying the ledge.

"Hey, there's not much room here to get too carried away," she said.

He winked at her.

"We'll think of something," he said, taking her in his arms again.

He still held onto her later as they ate chicken sandwiches and drank some wine. Great scenery, delicious food and being in the arms of the man she loved, life didn't get better than that. She closed her eyes, chewing thoughtfully and thinking about everything that had happened since she had returned to the ranch.

"You're awfully quiet," Matt said.

She opened her eyes and looked at him.

"I'm sorry," she said, "This whole case has been such a whirlwind trip and I brought you right into it."

"C.J., you've got nothing to be sorry about," Matt said, "I've never felt more relaxed than I do right now. I'm exactly where I want to be."

She sighed.

"So am I," she said, "It sure makes the future interesting to think about."

He stroked her arm.

"Yeah it does," he said, "Like I said, I'm not spending it thousands of miles away from you."

"I don't want you to give up your career," she said, "I can…"

"No you can't," he said, "You built your whole life in Houston. You deserve that after everything that you've been through. I can move my life there."

"But your agency is in L.A."

"I know, but I've been talking to Dan and he's got some work for me to do until I figure out what the next step will be and in what direction."

"What would that be," she asked.

"Something where I can really help people," he said, "The people who have nowhere else to turn."

She nodded thoughtfully seeing an expression in his eyes she recognized.

"That's such a helpless position to be in," she said, "and hopeless. I like the work I do know because I meet people like that all the time. There's too many of them in this world."

"I'd like there to be fewer of them."

She caressed his palm.

"Everyone needs someone like that," she said, "Who will be their advocate and their friend no matter what happens."

"I've always had someone special like that in my life," he said, "It's made all the difference."

She nodded.

"Me too," she said, "and I hope he knows just how much that's meant to be."

He embraced her in a way that answered her question and she leaned her head against him, feeling all was right in the world.

* * *

Kilroy and Nick stormed in Parker's office past his secretary, who just watched them go shaking her head. Parker looked up from his telephone and quickly told the person on the other line he'd get back with them. Then he turned to look at the two men.

"What can I help you with gentlemen?"

They didn't appear to be in the mood to be placated.

"We need that injunction lifted," Kilroy said.

Parker raised his hands.

"That's not part of my jurisdiction," he said, "It's in the hands of the federal court system now."

"That's not good enough," Kilroy said.

"Did you file your appeal," Parker asked.

Kilroy glared back.

"Yes we filed our appeal," he said, "A lot of good that will do us and that's what the best counsel our money could buy told us."

Parker set his jaw.

"What do you expect me to do?"

Kilroy leaned in closer.

"We expect your continued assistance and cooperation," he said, "I and my partners have too much money riding on these deals."

"So do I," Parker mumbled.

Nick stepped forward. Parker leaned away instinctively from the man who unlike most others, intimidated him.

"I'll take care of the opposition," he said, "But I need you to stay out of that part of it."

Parker swallowed.

"What do you mean take care of the opposition?"

Nick looked at Kilroy.

"I have my methods," he said, "I'll start with the lawyer bitch and work my way down from there."

"Hey, we don't use that term around women in this town," Parker said.

Nick appeared unmoved.

"Just let us do what we need to do until it's done," he said, "and keep a leash on Daniels."

"Don't forget to tell him to keep the rest of the city council in line," Kilroy interjected.

"Spread a little money around their pet projects," Nick said, "And that part of it's already done."

"Surely, you won't hurt anyone just to get that land," Parker asked, wringing his hands.

The two men just looked at him.

"You know damn well everything that we've done to this point," Nick said, "You're already involved up to your neck, definitely enough to be considered an accomplice so you best do what you're told and keep your mouth shut."

Parker blanched just before he nodded.

"That's good of you," Kilroy said, "Now we won't take up any more of your valuable time."

"We'll keep in touch," Nick said, touching the rim of his hat.

* * *

Rhonda and Chris were enjoying some ice tea in the kitchen when Matt and C.J. came in.

"It's about time you got back," Rhonda said, "I have some questions for C.J. about her dress."

"My dress…" C.J. said, looking down at her jeans and tee-shirt.

Rhonda folded her arms.

"Your bridesmaid dress," she said, "light peach or lavender?"

C.J. shrugged.

"Both would be really nice," she said, "In fact, I'm not sure which would be better."

"Chris likes the peach," Rhonda said, "and Fran texted that she liked the lavender so I guess you're the tiebreaker."

C.J.'s eyes widened.

"Couldn't I pick it out of a hat or something?"

Rhonda snorted.

"If you ever decide to get married, the planning alone is going to be a logistic nightmare."

C.J. tilted her head at the anxiety in her friend's voice.

"Rhonda, it'll be great whatever color the dresses are, or whether we wear anything at all."

Three faces turned towards her and Matt raised his brow at her.

"That's certainly an option to consider," he said.

C.J. blushed.

"Did I really just say that?"

Rhonda scrutinized her then looked at Matt.

"Gee, I wonder what would make you suggest such a thing. Those kind of comments just don't come out from nowhere."

C.J. went to pour herself some ice tea, needing to cool off.

"I was just kidding," she said, "Rhonda, your wedding's going to go beautifully but if it means that much to you, I'll go with the lavender."

"Traitor," Chris exclaimed from her corner.

"Okay, peach then," C.J. said, sipping her drink, "When are we having our dress fittings?"

"Tonight," Rhonda said, calmly, "Bonnie's friend who has a shop in town is fitting us in between two other weddings."

C.J. nearly dropped her drink.

"That's pretty short notice," she said.

Rhonda shrugged.

"She just got an opening when the bride for wedding #3 had to get a root canal done."

C.J. and Chris looked at each other.

"How many people are getting married this month?"

"About three couples," Thea said, "They want to get married before autumn, while the weather's fairly predictable."

"That makes sense," Rhonda said, "Less chance of a snowstorm in the summer time."

"We'd better get ready to fit in those dresses," Chris said, "Time to put the ice cream away."

C.J. laughed.

"You have the perfect excuse to fill out a dress."

Chris smiled.

"True," she said, "Fran's still fretting about getting her old body back."

"She had twins," C.J. said, "It might take a while, but she's always beautiful."

"You better tell her that when she arrives in a couple of days," Chris said, "She still feels as huge as she looked not too long ago."

"Her babies are so adorable," C.J. said, "I can't wait to see who they take after."

"They'll have Fran's scrappiness and Carlos' looks," Rhonda predicted.

Jed walked in and saw them.

"One of the fences broke again," he said, "and Frisco's in the area. We'd better get out there before he gets his mind into escaping again."

C.J. looked up.

"I'll help you," she said.

Matt put his hands on her shoulders.

"Now C.J., you've got that dress fitting."

She rolled her eyes.

"It's not until later and I don't want anything to happen to Frisco," she said, "Now you can argue with me but I'm still going."

Matt smiled.

"Let's get going, so we can get you back here in time."

Rhonda looked at C.J and waggled three fingers.

"You've got three hours girl," she said, "or I'm going to send a posse out after you."

C.J. chuckled.

"I promise I'll be back in time."

The three of them grabbed their coats and headed to get their horses at the barn. Rhonda, Chris and Thea watched them leave.

"She's just using this as an excuse to spend more time with her new boyfriend," Rhonda grumbled.

Chris frowned.

"Isn't that her old boyfriend?"

"Whatever," she said, "I know in the beginning of a relationship when love is new, it's hard to keep your hands off of each other but this is ridiculous."

"You and Jonathan haven't been together that long," Chris noted, "So why are you giving C.J. such a hard time when you're probably counting the days…"

"You're right," Rhonda said, "and boy do I hate it when you are."

* * *

The three of them rode out to where the fence was broken, but instead of a damaged fence, they found Reed on the ground, knocked out with his cell phone lying next to him.

They jumped off of their horses. Matt ran to feel Reed's neck for a pulse.

"Reed was the one who called me about the fence," Jed said, "how's he doing?"

"He's got a pretty strong pulse," Matt said, "He should be coming around soon. Looks like he caught a blow in the head."

"By who," Jed asked.

C.J. didn't answer that question but inside of her, she knew.


	32. Chapter 32

Chapter 32---Here's the latest installment of this story. Thanks for reading it, I hope you enjoy it and thanks for the feedback!

* * *

Reed began to regain consciousness. His eyes fluttered open and moved around, but soon enough he winced and tried to touch his head.

"Just lie still," Jed told him.

C.J. looked around the meadows for any traces of the assailants but found no one just a wide span of empty land as far as her eyes could see in any direction.

"They're gone," she said, "and I don't see Frisco anywhere."

Matt looked at the grassy spot in the direction where she pointed and saw a group of horses but not the buckskin colt.

"Maybe he went off in a different direction," he said.

Reed tried to lift his head up and Jed handed him a strip of cloth from his saddlebag to place on it to stanch the bleeding.

"What happened," Reed asked, weakly.

"That's what we were going to ask you," Jed said, "Do you remember anything?"

Reed's face looked blank, but the bleeding oozing down the side of his face slowed some and the color returned to his face.

"I just remember sizing up the broken fence there," he said, "and the next thing I knew I was down on the ground and the horses, scattered."

"Don't worry about the horses," Jed said, "They're grazing on yonder. What matters is that you're okay."

"My head hurts," Reed said, "But otherwise I feel okay."

C.J. sighed.

"He's probably going to need to get an Xray and some tests to make sure what we see is the extent of his injury."

Jed nodded and turned to Reed.

"Can you ride," he asked.

Reed rolled his eyes.

"What kind of question is that," he said, "Of course I can."

Jed reached over to help him up. Reed took his hand reluctantly and took some shaky steps before he stood on both feet.

"I can ride back on my own," he said, "and I don't need to see any doctor."

"Well, leave that decision to the doctor," Jed said, "Stop being stubborn, you're getting worse than me."

That brought a smile to the younger man's face.

"That'll be the day," he said.

C.J. looked at both of them.

"Will you be okay," she asked.

They both looked at her.

"Sure, we'll be fine," Jed said, "So if you want to go off and look for Frisco, that will be fine too."

C.J. smiled at him gratefully and got back on Sienna, taking the reins.

"I think I know where he went," she said.

Matt looked over at the mountain.

"I'm going with you," he said, "We'll have better luck that way."

"Sure," C.J. said, clicking to Sienna, "We'll start with his favorite trail."

Matt nodded.

"See you later," Jed said, "Stay safe in case those that attacked Reed are still out there."

"You too."

* * *

Matt and C.J. rode off towards the mountain.

They started at the bottom of the steep trail and slowly climbed it and looking about while their horses picked their way through the rocks. C.J. knew this pathway up the mountain like the back of her hand, having ridden up here many times looking for Frisco. Except for the time she and an injured Jed had charged up on horseback fleeing hitmen hired by Andre Duval. She sucked her breath in when his name flashed across her mind and to get his mind off of him, she instead looked around her at the beautiful array of flowers including geraniums and columbines which lined the trail on both sides. The coniferous trees, both pines and spruces grew tall and stout shading them both from the sunlight which had to settle for streaming through little cracks in between the smaller branches of the trees.

"Do you think he went as far as the cabin," Matt asked.

"He's probably already broken into it, crashed on the couch and is drinking all the beer," C.J. said.

Matt smiled.

"Then it should be real easy to bring him back down the mountain," he said.

C.J. grew silent for a while, content to look at the landscaping which grew more breathtaking with each turn on the mountain trail. Matt looked over at her from time to time, wondering what occupied her mind.

"Houston…"

"What's on your mind," he asked.

She looked at him.

"Why would they just hit Reed and run like that?"

"C.J., they're cowards and maybe they just wanted to scatter the horses all around," Matt said, "At least they didn't succeed in doing that."

"Do you think they did anything to Frisco?"

He read the worry in her eyes and shook his head.

"He wouldn't let any strangers within 10 feet of him," Matt said, "They probably just settled for running him off."

"But Reed didn't even see what was coming," she said.

"At least they didn't kill him."

She raised her eyes.

"Yeah that's a good thing," she said, "I know they're capable of it especially Nick."

"They sabotaged my plane," Matt said, "They tried to kill three of you in a car accident. Those are the signs of ruthless killers in my book."

"Mine too," she said, "I hope we can stop them from what they're planning to do. It's obvious now that the legal injunction just isn't enough."

He matched the determination in her eyes with that in his voice.

"We're going to do whatever we have to do to stop them," he said, "whatever it takes."

They continued riding up the trail, keeping a lookout for the dusky mustang but didn't see him anywhere. C.J. remembered that one of his favorite hideouts waited for them near the top of the smaller peak on the mountain. She headed in that direction, to her relief Sienna knew where she was heading and strode easily through the brush. Matt reined in Whiskey to follow in her footsteps.

"He's got to be up here," C.J. said, placing her hand over her forehead to look, "Because this is where he's been at least a dozen times."

Matt laughed.

"He really is a little Houdini isn't he?"

She smiled.

"He's a great spirited little colt," she said, "He'll made someone a good rodeo horse some day if they go that route."

Matt listened to the affection lacing her voice.

"You're really fond of him," Matt noted.

She turned toward him.

"Yeah I guess I am," she said, "I didn't even mind coming up here looking for him in the dead of winter because it gave me time not to think too much."

Matt looked around.

"I remember coming up here that time when it snowed hard and damn near heading off the ridge," he said, "until I saw that Diablo."

"Yeah, there's him too," she said, "I hope he's faring well since our last encounter with him."

"I imagine he doesn't let much keep him down," Matt said, "He's been in these mountains for a long time."

Suddenly, C.J. heard a rustling in the bush and looked up. In front of her stood Frisco, with a tuft of grass in his mouth.

Both reined in their horses.

"Do you think he'll run," Matt asked.

C.J. shook her head then focused her eyes forward.

"He never does," she said, "Usually by the time I catch up, he's done running off and ready to go home."

C.J. dismounted and carefully walked to the horse, Frisco simply looked up at her and snorted softly. She reached out to pat him on his nose for a spell.

"Is he okay?"

She turned to look at Matt.

"He looks fine to me," she said, reaching for his halter at last.

Frisco didn't fight her grip but followed her willingly back to Sienna who nuzzled the younger horse. C.J. got some rope from her saddlebag and fastened it to the halter then got back on her horse. They both started back down the trail. The sun began to move closer to the horizon and the air began to cool. They walked two abreast close enough so that their legs brushed and Frisco trotted along contentedly behind them.

"We've got to get back and see if Reed's okay," C.J. said.

"I'm sure he's fine," Matt said, "but you've got that dress fitting for Rhonda's wedding."

She shook her head.

"Damn I forgot all about that," she said, "Some maid of honor, I am."

"You'll be a beautiful one whether you get to that dress fitting or not," he said.

She smiled.

"Thanks," she said, "but every conversation that's come up about the dress, I get different color schemes thrown at me and they're all nice. I think any dress will do fine."

"Then tell Rhonda that," he said, "it might make her feel a little less guilty about making the choice herself."

"But part of that is my job," C.J. said, "I'm supposed to help with the decision making but I don't know anything about weddings."

"You were the maid of honor in Chris' wedding," he reminded her.

"But that was much smaller than this," she said, "We didn't really have dresses picked out for it. Chris didn't really want an elaborate wedding."

"You'll do fine," he said, "and like I said, you'll look beautiful."

They reached the bottom of the mountain trail and headed out across the meadow.

She shook her head.

"Rhonda and Jonathan, who would have thought?"

He studied her.

"Why are you so shocked," he asked, "They'd been going out for a while."

"I remember Rhonda swearing she'd never get married," C.J. said, "She didn't want to tie herself down in a relationship."

Matt shrugged.

"People change," he said, "and people say a lot of things they mean right up to the point that something happens that challenges those beliefs."

"Or they meet the right person," C.J. finished, "and I do think they're a great couple."

"As her friend or Jonathan's ex-girlfriend?"

She looked at the band of mares and their offspring still grazing in the distance as they rode by them. Frisco tugged on his rope a little but still followed them.

"Both maybe, "she said, "They're polar opposites in many ways but I think that's helpful in their case because it allows them to complement each other more, balance each other out."

He chuckled.

"That's one way of putting it."

She looked at him sideways.

"Well, look how we started," she said, "We've been best friends since we were kids but we've only been going out for about a week."

"I feel like I've been going out longer than that," he said, "We've known each other longer than we haven't."

"You know what I mean," she said, "It's like something old and familiar and new and exciting at the same time."

Matt gave that some thought.

"That works for me," he said, "Like having been away for a long time and finally coming home and knowing it."

C.J.'s eyes began to water and she blinked them.

"Yeah, that's a perfect way to put it," she said, "Coming home."

* * *

They heard hoof beats first in the distance and then approaching. Looking up, they saw Jed and two other ranchers heading towards them.

"What's going on," C.J. asked, "How's Reed doing?"

"He's at the hospital getting stitched up," Jed said, "No serious injuries, no concussion."

"So he'll be back home soon?"

Jed nodded.

"I see you caught up with Frisco here," he said, "Was he up in his spot in the mountains?"

C.J. nodded.

"At least he's predicable on that level," she said, "So how much did you learn about what happened with Reed?"

"Not much," Jed said, "He has vague memories of being struck from behind."

C.J. sighed.

"I know the feeling," she said.

"So someone just knocked him out without bothering to say anything to him," Matt said.

"Sounds like that's what went down," Jed said, "These guys were at the Wyatt place when it happened. They did hear some horses running but it could have been the mustangs fleeing."

"How are things out there," Matt asked.

"Quiet, which is what doesn't make much sense," Jed said, "Why target Reed even if only to scare the mustangs and stay away from the real hot spot?"

C.J. scratched her head.

"I know this is Nick's doing and he doesn't always make much sense but he had his reasons for doing this," she said, "I have a pretty good feeling we'll find out soon what they are."

Jed sighed.

"I have that same feeling," he said.

Matt looked at the men.

"So what are you going to do now," he said.

"We're heading in and I'm going to beat down the door of Daniels' office and get a report filed," Jed said, "I know it's like beating a dead horse with that man but we need a paper trail on this harassment."

C.J. nodded.

"You're right," she said, "Well, I'm heading out that way to meet with the other women for dress fittings."

"I guess we'll all meet at the diner after we're done with our business," Jed said.

Matt and C.J. nodded.

"Sounds like a plan to me," she said.

* * *

C.J. dashed into the dress shop and saw Chris and Rhonda looking at several different shades of pink and peach dresses. Butterfly sat in the corner, listening to her iPod and watching the adults with some level of amusement.

"It's about time you showed up," Rhonda said.

"I'm sorry, Rhonda," C.J. said, "But Reed got hurt…"

"What happened to Reed," Butterfly said from her corner.

C.J. turned toward the teenager and smiled.

"He's going to be okay," she said, "but someone hit him in the back of the head and knocked him out."

Butterfly's eyes looked troubled.

"Who would do that to Carter's brother?"

"We don't know Butterfly," C.J. said, "but he's okay. He's getting stitched up and then he's going with Matt and Jed to file a report with Sheriff Daniels."

Rhonda rolled her eyes.

"A lot of good that will do," she said, "It's probably those creeps who have him on their payroll."

C.J. sighed.

"We don't know for sure if Daniels is working for Kilroy, Nick or the lot of them," she said, "He could just be in way over his head and pride prevents him from admitting that."

"Well someone needs to light a flare under his butt," Rhonda grumbled, "or get this town a new sheriff."

"I agree with Rhonda," Butterfly said, folding her arms, "I'm going to call Carter and see if he's okay."

"Butterfly, I'm sure Reed's little brother is fine and we need you here," Chris said, "We still have some dresses to try on."

Butterfly slumped her shoulders.

"Do I have to," she said, "Why do we have to try on so many dresses when we can only wear one?"

Chris gave her a stern look.

"We have to try all of these dresses on to find that 'one' dress," she said, "We're doing this to help Rhonda have a wonderful wedding."

"If Jonathan's such a great guy," Butterfly said, "then she'll already have a great wedding with him just being there."

That comment provided the other women food for thought.

"That's a really mature view of things," Chris said, pleasantly surprised.

"She does have a point," Rhonda said, "and I think that pink dress looked wonderful on her."

"Yeah, and it didn't make me look like a little kid," Butterfly agreed, "So can I go to the diner and get a banana split. It's just down the street."

Chris looked indecisive.

"I don't know if it's safe Butterfly," she said, "especially after what happened today."

Thea walked out of the dressing room, after trying on her outfit.

"I'm done," she said, "I'll be more than happy to take Butterfly to the diner and we'll wait for you."

Chris nodded.

"Okay, you're finished," she said, "I hope you like the pink dress a lot because you'll be wearing it."

"Love it," Butterfly said quickly.

She grabbed her things before Chris could change her mind and practically pulled Thea out of the dress shop. The rest of them watched them leave in bemusement.

Rhonda rubbed her forehead.

"She really wanted out of here, didn't she?"

C.J. chuckled.

"She's just a teenager," she said, "who doesn't like to stand still for very long."

"She was like this at our wedding," Chris said, "but she looked beautiful at the alter."

"Yeah, after you forced her to remove those ghoulish earrings in the church lobby," Rhonda said.

Chris sighed.

"Oh that," she said, "Butterfly refused to speak to me for a while but allowing her to film the reception helped thaw that chill."

C.J. began looking at the dresses laid out, testing the different fabrics with her fingers.

"What do you like," Rhonda asked.

"They all look so beautiful," she said, "I couldn't ever pick."

"Well, try some of them on," Rhonda said, "and we'll serve as the panel of judges."

C.J. frowned.

"Don't be too harsh," she said, carefully picking up a couple of dresses and heading towards the dressing room.

They laughed as she shut the door. She tried on the lavender dress and really liked it though it might need some alternation. The peach colored outfit flattered her figure in the mirror but she wondered if the color was right. She paraded both outfits in front of her friends and they thought she looked great in both of them which made her decision that much more difficult. Even trying in dresses ranging from lime green to soft yellow to burgundy red didn't help her in deciding which color and style she liked best.

Finally she sat down, worn out and not just with indecision.

"So what's the verdict," Rhonda asked.

She just closed her eyes back and rested her bed on the comfortable chair.

"I'm not sure," she said, "but if Chris still wants to go with the peach or lavender, I'm on board."

Rhonda put her hands on her hips.

"Chris, didn't you want the key lime?"

"No, I'm cool with the lavender," she said, "as long as they can expand it a bit in front."

Rhonda looked at her friend.

"You've sure grown up front," she said, "and not just in the belly area. Are you sure you're just having one kid?"

"No I'm not sure," she said, "The first ultrasound wasn't conclusive but I'll faint off the examining table if they find another baby in there."

C.J. smiled.

"No you won't," she said, "You'll be thrilled and so will Dan…once you get over the shock of course."

Chris patted C.J.'s arm.

"We haven't heard from Fran lately," she said, "Has she and Carlos gotten over their shock?"

Rhonda laughed.

"I'll bet she's still trying to revive the old man," she said.

"At least they knew ahead of time," Chris said, "and right before the baby shower."

"That's always handy," Rhonda admitted, "so you can go back to the shops and double up the gifts."

"I'll take the lavender too," C.J. said, "It does look lovely."

Rhonda sighed.

"Okay now that we got that monumental issue settled," she said, "I think we can head to the diner soon."

* * *

Suddenly the door opened and in walked Sydney and Joseph, video camera in hand. The three women just looked at each other.

"Hey, looks like we got here just in time," Sydney said, "The whole town wants to know, have you picked out your dresses yet?"

* * *

Matt, Jed and Reed left the hospital in disgust after having listened to Daniels explain once again why his office's hands were tied in doing anything about this latest criminal act against Reed. Even as they pushed Daniels to fill out a report, Daniels raised his hands and said it was out of his hands because Reed had little memory of the assault let alone any idea who was responsible.

Matt earned Daniels' ire by questioning his policing skills then he raised his blood pressure up several notches by telling Daniels that everyone knew that the latest attack could be traced back to the homestead of both Kilroy and Nick.

"That's just a harebrained theory by a man who's got a grudge for two businessmen who have been innocent of any wrongdoing," Daniels had said.

Matt didn't drop the issue.

"Why are you protecting those thugs," he asked, "They have tried to kill people who they feel have stopped them from pushing through their development project."

"So you say, Mr. Houston," Daniels said, "It's all rumors and hearsay with the intent to smear the names of two fine gentlemen."

"Aren't you obligated to take a police report," Jed said.

Daniels sighed.

"Only if I think a crime has happened and I'm not convinced that Reed here, didn't just trip over a rock or something and hit his head that way."

"I may not remember much," Reed said, touching his stitches gingerly, "But I know that didn't happen."

Jed nearly lost his temper at that point.

"You are so full of it Daniels," he said, "What this town needs is a real sheriff who's committed to protecting and serving all the residents of this county and not just the wealthy ones."

"You don't like the current sheriff and the job I'm doing," Daniels said, "You run for office."

"I just might," Jed said.

Daniels appeared taken aback by that revelation.

"Go ahead, but what you'll find is that this job is much tougher than you think," he said, "and the roads to navigate through it are awfully tricky at times."

Jed hadn't flinched.

"You make it that way every time you compromise that badge and the people who entrusted you with it," he said.

Daniels just glared, then shook his head, threw up his hands and walked out. The three men looked at his exit and then looked at Jed.

"Are you serious about running," Reed said, "or did I just hear you wrong because I hit my head?"

"No, I guess you heard right," Jed said, grimly.

"You should think about running," Matt said, "You'd be an excellent sheriff. After all, you have the big-city law enforcement background plus you've lived here long enough so that people like and trust you."

"As a rancher," Jed corrected, "That's how they know me."

"Doesn't matter," Matt said, "If you ran for sheriff against Daniels, you'd win and you could really turn this county around in terms of how justice is given out."

Jed agreed to give it some thought and discuss it with Bonnie to see what she thought before making any decision. Matt however watched the emotions light up his face and knew he was looking at the next sheriff.

* * *

Rhonda looked at Sydney and her camera crew in disbelief.

"We're already finished, dresses have been picked and we're getting a bite to eat," she said.

Sydney shrugged.

"I'll just follow you then," she said, "Is this like the rehearsal dinner?"

Rhonda shook her head.

"We're not to that point yet in the itinerary," she said, "We're just having a bite to eat before we head on back."

"So when's Jonathan coming?"

Rhonda sighed.

"I told you in a day or so," she said, "He's got those interviews to get through then he's going to hop on his plane out here."

"It'll be great to see him," Sydney said, "It's been a while."

"I'm sure he'll be happy to see you," Rhonda said, "Still during all our time together, he never mentioned you."

Sydney shrugged.

"Well, our great fling was a while ago," she said, "Ancient history."

Rhonda laughed.

"I'll say," she said.

"What about C.J.," Sydney said, "She had a thing with him."

C.J. glared at her.

"It wasn't a 'thing'," she said, "He was my boyfriend for a couple of years."

"Oh yeah," Sydney said, "I think we went out with me during one of his breakups with you."

C.J. didn't take the bait.

"Jonathan's still a very dear friend of mine," she said, "and he's found the woman he wants to spend his life with and I think all of his ex-girlfriends in this room should accept that."

Sydney rolled her eyes.

"Don't tell me a small part of you isn't jealous of your friend."

C.J. counted to ten.

"No, I'm not," she said, "Besides I'm in another relationship right now and it's keeping me very busy."

"You have a boyfriend," Sydney said, "Why didn't you say anything about it?"

"Why would I," C.J. said, "I barely know you."

"Why, is it a secret," Sydney challenged.

C.J. just smiled.

"No, but it's not fodder for the next edition of Good Morning Silverlode either."

Sydney just pulled out her notepad then stopped. '

"Was that a joke," she asked, "because that's actually not a bad idea. This town could use a morning talk show."

Rhonda tugged on C.J.'s arms.

"Come on," she said, "Let's go meet the rest of our crowd at the diner."

C.J. and Chris followed. But as they turned into the walkway into the restaurant, there stood Nick.

"Look what the cat dragged in," Rhonda said.


	33. Chapter 33

Chapter 33--Here's another chapter of this story. Hope you like it and thanks for the comments and for reading!

* * *

Nick smiled at the women.

"Now is that any way to greet someone?"

Rhonda folded her arms.

"It is, if that person has tried to harm your friends," she said.

"I don't know what you've been told but I haven't hurt anyone," he said.

"We must run in different circles," Rhonda said, "Because one of my friends said you threatened her."

Nick's smile dimmed a little.

"Well that friend of yours would be wrong," he said, "I do recall Ms Parsons here coming onto me a time or two."

C.J.'s eyes blazed but she said nothing.

"Honey, you're not that great looking," Rhonda said, "To overcome that nasty personality of yours that's more suited for a snake."

"Hey, I'm here trying to be gentlemanly and polite and you're going all hostile on me," he said.

C.J. sighed, looking him square in the face.

"You made it clear to me several times what you would do if I stopped you and Kilroy from getting your way with your development plans," she said, "Quite graphically if I recall correctly."

Nick shrugged.

"You're recalling wrong," he said, "In fact, while I'm here, I'll tell you that I've spoken with Kilroy and we're ready to make you and your clients an offer I'm sure you won't refuse."

C.J. tilted her head.

"Now what would that be," she said, "I can't think of a single thing you have to offer that we wouldn't refuse just as a matter of principle."

"You're wrong," he said, "I've talked to the other partners and we're willing to make a generous financial settlement."

"How generous," C.J. asked.

Chris and Rhonda looked at her but she just raised a brow in response.

"I don't want to reveal the figure in casual conversation…"

"What's so casual about making an offer to settle a case?"

"Well, I'll tell you what," he said, "I'll be nice and tell you that it's well in the seven figures."

"How well," C.J. said, watching his face.

"Very well," he said.

C.J. looked at him a long moment. Her friends looked at her and then they looked at Nick, watching him hide a grimace behind his smile.

"Well, cat got your tongue?"

She kept looking at him, her lips pursed.

"I could raise it a little if it's not high enough," he said, "Though I think the range is very generous."

Suddenly, she started laughing. He frowned at her.

"What's so funny," he demanded.

She couldn't stop for another minute but finally she put her hand over her mouth to quell it.

"You," she said, "You and your kind are just so damn pathetic thinking everyone's like you and can be bought off with a wad of cash."

"It's a hell of a big wad," Nick said, "You'd be a fool to turn it down."

She folded her arms.

"How so," she asked.

He flustered.

"Well, the money I'm offering is worth more than the two parcels in dispute," he said.

She scoffed.

"If that were true, you wouldn't have offered the money in the first place," she said, "So now that we've established on the table that we both know the land's worth more than your generous offer, I'm going to tell you that this conversation is over."

His face turned ugly.

"Bitch," he said.

"Watch your tongue," she said, "Your gender is outnumbered right now."

"Damn straight," Rhonda said.

Chris nodded.

"You run along now back to Kilroy and tell him that his 'generous' offer has been turned down," C.J. said.

He grabbed her arm suddenly.

"You listen here," he said, "I'm not going to put up with you and your ilk endangering my life's work."

She glared at him.

"Let go," she said, "I'm warning you once."

He tried to pull her closer.

"I've been very polite up to now," he said, "but the gloves are coming off."

She pulled loose.

"I thought they came off when you had someone push our car off the road," he said.

"I didn't," he said, then tried to grab her again.

She dodged his attempts.

"You want to have kids right," C.J. said, "Then keep your hands off."

"You wouldn't…" he said.

"Try me," she said, "I believe the last time it was me on my feet, you on the ground."

"Get out of here," Rhonda said, "Go back from that rock where you came from."

Sydney came running up.

"I forgot to ask you…," she started, and then took in the sight, "It can wait until you're finished here."

Nick smiled.

"Oh we're done," he said, "We were just exchanging pleasantries."

Sydney looked at C.J. who just looked away.

"Well, it looks like you were discussing something serious," she said, "Care to share it with the world?"

Nick frowned.

"I and my development partners made Ms Parsons and her clients a very generous settlement offer," he said.

"And I told him where he and his partners could take it," C.J. finished.

"Very rudely I might add," Nick said, "I'll leave now but that's the final offer."

C.J. nodded.

"And you received an answer," she said, "You can take it back to your boss."

Nick stomped off and they all watched him leave.

"So what happened," Sydney said, "He doesn't look very happy."

C.J. shrugged.

"Nothing," she said, "At least nothing that's fit to print."

"He said he offered you a deal," Sydney pressed.

"He offered to throw a wad of cash at the ranchers for their land and he got turned down," she said, "He doesn't like being turned down much."

Sydney laughed.

"What man does," she said, "especially by a woman."

"He also threatened her again," Rhonda said, "but then again, you probably don't think that's newsworthy."

"Threatened how," Sydney asked.

C.J. brushed her hands.

"Something about the gloves coming off," she said, "but they've been off for a while."

"Kilroy and his partners really want to get this project off the ground," Sydney said, "It could bring jobs into the region if a new ski resort gets built."

"But most of the people here don't want it," C.J. countered, "and they're not planning on building a ski resort."

Sydney's eyes widened, confused.

"What do you mean," she said, "How would you know that?"

"It's called investigating," C.J. said, "I thought that would be a term a reporter like yourself would recognize."

Sydney harrumphed, throwing her shoulders back.

"I know what it means," she said, "So you did hire Matt to look into the situation?"

C.J. shook her head.

"He's here on vacation," she said, "because he's been under a lot of stress but yes, he's been helping us."

"I got dozens of phone calls about the article I wrote about him," Sydney said, "enough to fill his social calendar for the rest of the summer."

Rhonda laughed.

"He's got enough on his social calendar already," she said, "keeping him very busy."

C.J. smiled at her friend.

"We did find out that the geological surveys done on the properties within the past year don't match those done years ago."

That caught Sydney's attention.

"What do you mean," she said, "You're not talking about falsified records."

She pulled out her worn notepad.

"So you think that these developers including the one who just stomped off are engaging in fraud," Sydney said.

C.J. paused.

"There's definitely something underhanded going on," she said, "but this is all off the record."

"Sure, I get that," Sydney said, scribbling in her notepad.

* * *

C.J. looked up and saw Matt and Jed walking towards them. She left Sydney and the others and walked up to meet them.

"How's Reed doing," she asked.

"They've stitched him up and are trying to keep him over night," Jed said, "They've taken on a losing battle."

"How you doing," Matt said, looking at her.

"Okay, we ran into Nick," she said.

"What happened?"

"He said that Kilroy and his partners were willing to offer a high seven figure settlement in the case," she said.

Matt and Jed looked at each other.

"What did you say," Jed asked.

"I told him where to put it," she said, "He didn't like that much."

Rhonda joined her friend.

"Yeah, she really told him," she said, "She also asked him if he wanted children."

C.J. shot a look at Rhonda who just shrugged.

"Why did you say that," Matt asked.

C.J. paused.

"Because he really didn't take the rejection of his settlement offer very well," she said.

"C.J…"

She turned towards him, waving her hands.

"No look, he didn't say anything new," she said, "I can handle him and this case."

Matt sighed.

"Nobody said you couldn't," he said, "But I'm worried about his behavior towards you and how dangerous he is."

"I'm aware of how he is," she said.

"He could get a lot worse," Matt said, "if he feels that money-making scam he and Kilroy have got going slipping away and there's no law enforcement in this town to keep you safe from him."

"I know that too," C.J. said, "That's why this town needs people like Jed to run against the sheriff."

Matt smiled.

"Actually, Jed's decided he's going to run against Daniels in the upcoming election," he said.

C.J. smiled broadly at the news and hugged Jed.

"I'm so glad you're going to do it," she said, "I wish I lived here so I could vote for you but I don't think you'll need it."

"I decided that I couldn't do any worse than the current sheriff," Jed said, "and I've got some ideas for how to turn the department around to be more accountable to all the county's residents."

"Daniels didn't like it much," Matt said, "I think he knows that if Jed runs, he's out of a job."

"Damn straight," C.J. said, "Jed's going to win."

Jed's face flushed a bit.

"I still have to come up with a campaign and raise funds," he said, "It's going to be a difficult fight."

"How'd Bonnie take it," she asked.

"I haven't told her yet and I won't decide for sure until I know if I have her blessing or not," Jed said.

"She'll give it to you," C.J. said, "This will make her day."

"We'll see her at the diner," Rhonda offered, "You can tell her then."

"Let's go then," Jed said, with a smile.

C.J. looked at them.

"Sydney's been showing up," she said, "Houston, she wanted to know if you were involved in the investigation of Kilroy."

"I hope you told her that I am," he said.

She nodded, but raised her finger.

"I did tell her that your main reason for being here was to relax and take a break," she said, "and that's still stands."

"I am relaxed," he protested, "I've got someone keeping me very relaxed."

She laughed.

"That's not what I meant."

He put his arm around her shoulder as they began to walk to the diner.

"I'm where I want to be," he said, "doing exactly what I want to be doing."

She smiled.

"So am I," she said, "As difficult as this case has been, I've never had this much fun."

He raised a brow.

"In between car accidents, emergency landings and Molotov cocktails," he said.

She leaned her head into his shoulder.

"That's nothing new for either of us," she said, "It's the life we chose."

"Yeah, we did," he said, "But we make insurance companies nervous."

She laughed again.

"Occupational hazard," she said.

* * *

They headed into the diner and saw Bonnie and Butterfly already sitting at a table. Jed walked over to greet his wife who stood up.

"I've got some news for you," he said, "Maybe you'd better sit down to hear it."

Bonnie narrowed her eyes.

"Is it good news," she asked.

"Yeah, I think so," Jed said, "I'm running for sheriff against Daniels."

Her face lit up and she yelled through the diner.

"All right," she said, "I know you'll give that Daniels a run for his money."

"I'm going to try," he said, sitting down beside her.

"Jed, you're perfect for the job," she said, "You were made to be a sheriff."

He coughed.

"I wouldn't exactly say that," he said.

Bonnie snorted.

"Don't give me that," she said, "You're a born cop, even though you're a rancher now and you know it."

He nodded.

"I guess I've always felt like I could have stayed in that profession," he said, "But I love ranching."

"I know you do," she said, "You can still ranch in between working as a top cop."

"I don't know if I'd have the time," he said, "A lot of work needs to be done on that department to undo the damage that Daniels has done."

"Then you're the man to do it," Bonnie said, softly.

Butterfly grinned.

"This is so cool," she said, "We're here sitting with the next sheriff."

"I still have to campaign and win the election," he said, "Daniels isn't going to give up his seat easily."

"No one's voting for him," Bonnie said, "I think everybody's fed up with the catering to special interests that he and Parker have been engaging in for years."

"Let's hope so."

* * *

The waitress brought them some menus and glasses of water. Matt and C.J. sat with Rhonda and Chris.

Rhonda looked at Matt.

"You should have seen here standing up to Nick," she said, "She was very impressive."

Matt didn't look happy.

"I wish she didn't have to," Matt said, "Maybe he needs another talking to."

C.J. sighed.

"Don't treat me like I'm not sitting at the same table."

"Hey don't look at me," Rhonda said, "I'm proud of how you're representing the sisterhood."

"I don't want to see you get hurt," Matt said, "and Nick's proven he's capable of far worse."

"He's not going to win," C.J. said, "Not him, not Kilroy, not Parker. Jed's running for sheriff is a great first step for cleaning up this town. This lawsuit is another."

"I'm not trying to overstep my bounds, C.J.," Matt said, "But I'm not about to sit around while he's making threats against you."

C.J. looked back at him, determination on her face. The kind Matt had learned there was no getting around or through.

"I can't let him get his way, Houston," she said, "or I'm totally ineffective at what I do."

"You're very effective at your job," Matt said, "That's not the issue here. Your safety is."

"I'm fine," she said, "I'm here, aren't I?"

"I want it to stay that way," he said.

C.J. looked at his expression and softened.

"I'll take every precaution but I'm not stepping down from this fight," she said, "It wouldn't be fair to the ranchers."

"I don't think he's asking you to do that," Chris offered, "I think he just wants you to be careful."

C.J. ran her hand through her hair.

"That's exactly what I've been doing," she said, "I don't need two of you telling me to do it better."

Rhonda chimed in.

"Yeah, the woman can clearly handle herself," she said, "I still remember how she took on Fran in Bannon County in the showers and Fran's no shrinking violet."

Matt sighed.

"I know you can take care of herself," he said, "but you shouldn't have to if your friends are here."

"I know," C.J. said, "but there's a certain amount that I have to do for myself. That's a promise I made myself during the past year."

He nodded.

"Okay, but tell me if it gets worse than it is right now," he asked.

"I will," she said, "I promise all of you that I will ask for your help if I need it."

Rhonda nodded.

"Works for me," she said, "I'm not bad in a fight myself."

C.J. looked at her.

"I don't want anyone else to get hurt either," she said, "Reed didn't deserve what happened to him."

"It's too bad that Jed's not sheriff right now," Chris said, "Then no one would have to worry about being good fighters."

"True," C.J. said, "but November's still a while away and Daniels is still in charge and the only ones who've been in jail have been Jed and me."

"A rock and a hard place," Rhonda said, "That's where the town's put you."

"Not everyone," C.J. said, "Most of the people have been supportive because they realize how important this battle's going to be to keep their way of life."

"And if we're right about it Kilroy and company being less than honest about what they're really up to, the stakes have just gone up," Matt said.

"We need more evidence," C.J. said, "to take back to some law enforcement agency that's not on Kilroy's payroll."

"We'll find it," Matt said.

Rhonda smiled.

"Now that you've cleared that up," she said, "We can talk about the wedding rehearsal."

C.J. brightened.

"When is it," she asked.

"I think the day after Jonathan arrives," Rhonda said, "I hope it goes smoothly."

"Why wouldn't it," Chris said, "You walk down the aisle without tripping over your veil, you meet your beloved at the altar, promise eternal devotion and that's pretty much it."

"That's complicated enough," Rhonda said, "I can't hear any more."

"I'd give you advice, but I've never been married myself," C.J. said.

"I came close once," Matt said.

Sydney came rushing in the diner.

"I thought I'd never find you," she said, "I think I found what you're looking for."

They just stared at her.

"What," Rhonda finally asked.

Sydney looked around the table.

"Are you sure you want everyone to hear my news?"

Rhonda shrugged.

"Is it a state secret?"

Sydney hesitated.

"Well, no," she said, "but it's a bit personal."

Rhonda sighed.

"Just say it."

Sydney's smile widened.

"I found the perfect person," she said.

"For what," Rhonda said, "Can you be a little more specific?"

"The bachelorette party," Sydney said.

Rhonda looked at C.J. and Chris.

"Oh that," she said, "I think I know what she's talking about."

Matt looked at the women suddenly feeling outnumbered.

"I could leave while you ladies talk to Sydney."

Rhonda snorted.

"I never took you for the bashful type, Matt."

"I'm not," he said.

Sydney continued.

"I found a stripper," she said, "and he's very good looking and well built."

That caught Rhonda's interest.

"Really," she said, "Do I get to check him out?"

Sydney said.

"I'll have to think about that," she said.

"I'm not paying for him sight unseen," Rhonda said.

"Excuse me," Matt said, leaving the table, "I'll leave you to planning your party."

Sydney pulled out her palm pilot.

"I suppose you can go and interview him tomorrow," she said, "but I think you'll like him."

Rhonda's mouth pursed.

"He's not one of your story subjects that you slept with, is he?"

Sydney's eyes flashed.

"No, I never got around to doing his life story," she said, "I hadn't gotten that far in the Rolodex yet."

* * *

Matt sat with Jed and Bonnie. Butterfly had run to the front of the diner to sit with Carter who had dropped by the diner after making sure his brother was settled at the hospital for his overnight stay.

"I guess they finally convinced Reed to stay overnight," Matt said.

"That's great news," Jed said, "He took a pretty hard knock to the head."

"Why'd you leave the women," Bonnie asked.

Matt smiled.

"They're planning Rhonda's…bachelorette party."

"Oh that should be something," Bonnie said, "It's an important rite at any woman's wedding."

"So's the bachelor party," Jed said, "Is Jonathan planning one?"

"I would imagine so," Bonnie said, "He's a red-blooded young man."

"Did you have one," Matt asked.

Jed coughed.

"We had a fishing trip instead," he said, "Most of my friends are more excited by the catch of the day that has scales and gills."

Matt laughed.

"Sounds like my kind of crowd," he said.

"These parties are harmless," Bonnie said, "There's nothing wrong with sowing your last wild oats as long as you don't do too much sowing."

"Bonnie had a raucous party," Jed said.

She slapped him playfully.

"It wasn't that lively," she said, "We swapped stories most of the nights and did some partying but it was just to loosen up for the wedding."

"I heard the police were almost called," Jed said.

Bonnie laughed.

"They just dropped by to check out the hore'dourves," she said.

* * *

"It sounds promising," Chris said at the other table, "I have to say this party might be shaping up."

"Definitely," Rhonda said, "If Sydney's right about this guy, he'll be perfect for our party."

C.J. looked back and forth between the two of them, staying out of the conversation.

"What do you think," Rhonda said.

C.J. looked back at them.

"Nothing that you haven't said," she said.

"You are coming to the party," Rhonda said.

"Of course, to keep you in line just like I said," C.J. said.

Rhonda studied her friend.

"Does all this make you uncomfortable," she asked.

C.J. felt her face flush.

"No…I just…think it's kind of exploitative."

Rhonda put her hands on her hips.

"Why," she said, "Men ogle at scantily clad women all the time."

"I'm going to your party," C.J. said, "isn't that enough?"

"Not if you're faking it," Rhonda said, "The stripper will know and it will hurt his feelings."

Chris raised her hand.

"I see where she's coming from," she said, "It's actually a very enlightened point of view."

Rhonda sighed.

"And I'm not enlightened because I enjoy some beefcake every once in a while," she said.

"It doesn't take into account that he's a human being too," C.J. said, "I think that's what makes me uneasy about it."

"If he's getting paid, why does it matter," Rhonda said, "I'm sure he'll agree when I ask him if he's being exploited."

"Let's just drop it," C.J. said.

"Okay, fine with me," she said, "We'll interview the strip…the man tomorrow."

Chris nodded.

"Sounds good to me," she said.

Sydney walked back towards their table.

"I thought you left," Rhonda said.

"I did," Sydney said, "but there's someone outside who wants to talk to C.J. standing out there."

C.J. looked up.

"Who is it," she said.

"He didn't leave a name," Sydney said, "just that he wants to talk to you about the lawsuit."

C.J. stood up.

"I'll be back," she said.

Rhonda frowned.

"Are you sure you should go alone," she said.

"I'll be fine," C.J. said before she left.


	34. Chapter 34

Chapter 34---Here's the latest chapter in this fan fiction. I hope you enjoy it and thanks for the comments. I also posted an older fanfiction that I wrote of the last episode of the series.

* * *

C.J. walked outside, her hands in her pockets curious about what she might find. She ran a few possibilities in her head but whO stood in front of her wasn't one of them.

"Deputy Tammy," she said.

"Yes Ma'am," said the tall woman said who looked so different in jeans and a long-sleeved shirt than in uniform. A cowboy hat which hid most of her face completed the very different picture of the deputy C.J. had seen on several occasions.

"I didn't expect to see you," C.J. said, "and judging by your attire, this clearly isn't professional business."

Tammy looked at her.

"No Ma'am," she said, "but it is business."

C.J. gestured to her.

"Come on, let's go discuss it someplace not so out in the open."

Tammy followed her to the park and when they reached one of the picnic tables beneath a tree, they sat down.

"Were you the one who…"

"Who did what," Tammy interrupted.

C.J. took a deep breath.

"Never mind," she said, "what did you wish to talk to me about?"

Tammy hesitated.

"I respect Sheriff Daniels and I always have," she said, "We've worked together for years but…"

"You don't like what's going on right now," C.J. guessed.

Tammy looked away, then nodded.

"I've always wanted to be a cop all of my life," she said, "I grew up in a household of men. I've got six brothers, all of them ranchers."

C.J. smiled.

"But you, the only woman decided to go into another male-dominated profession," she said.

"Yes I did," Tammy said, "and I've never regretted it. But right now I have to admit, I am questioning it."

"Why?"

"My brothers are some of those ranchers that are on the other side," she said, "I shouldn't even be saying those words, that ranchers are on the opposite sides of law enforcement."

C.J. tilted her head.

"But it's true, isn't it," she said, "It's true in Silver Lode."

Tammy nodded, reluctantly.

"I hate to say it," she said, "But Sheriff Daniels is wrong to side with Mayor Parker and the developers but that's exactly what he's doing."

"Yes he is," C.J. agreed, "but why is that? What does he get out of this deal?"

"Money in his political campaign for the elections this fall," Tammy said, "The developers are making monthly contributions to his reelection committee."

"Money can be a powerful motivator but why the need for it," C.J. said, "Most sheriff elections are unopposed."

Tammy smiled.

"Because rumor is, Jed's thinking about running."

C.J. widened her eyes, amazed at how quickly news traveled on the water cooler express.

"I had heard about that," she said, "I think Jed would be an excellent sheriff. Just what Silver Lode needs."

Tammy looked carefully around the park.

"I agree with you," she said, "off the record of course."

"I'm not a reporter," C.J. said, "Anything you tell me stays with me unless you allow otherwise."

Tammy's face paled.

"I'd lose my job if I seemed anything less than 100 percent loyal to Daniels," she said.

"Don't worry about that," C.J. said, "There's ways to protect whistleblowers."

Tammy laughed.

"So they say," she said, "but that doesn't apply to law enforcement let alone in a little town like Silver Lode."

"How many other deputies feel the way you do," C.J. asked.

Tammy paused.

"Not many will say anything, because they don't want to make waves," she said, "but I know I'm not the only one."

"Daniels hasn't gotten very far in the investigation of the accident that seriously injured two of my colleagues," C.J. noted.

Tammy looked at her hands. C.J. saw that they were deeply callused, like hers had become after she spent months working on the ranch.

"He didn't actually do an investigation," Tammy said, "He started one but after receiving a phone call one day, it didn't seem to go anywhere."

"It's been classified an accident caused by the driver, Jason, falling asleep at the wheel," C.J. said, "Do you believe that's what happened?"

Tammy pursed her lips, before shaking her head.

"It was Kilroy and his men," she said, "They're all ruthless if anything or anyone gets in their way. Especially Nick."

"I noticed," C.J. said.

"And you being a woman makes it all the more galling to them that they're losing this fight," Tammy said.

C.J. smiled softly.

"I notice that too."

"I imagine you get that a lot," Tammy said, "being a lady lawyer."

"Yes I do," C.J. said, "Let's just say that Kilroy and his good old boys aren't the first to throw a Molotov cocktail through my window."

* * *

Matt sat with Jed and Bonnie as they finished up their meal.

"So when are you going to start your campaign," Matt asked.

Jed sipped his beer and sighed.

"I wish I could start right now like I need to do," he said, "but I've got so much work on my plate already."

"I can start," Bonnie said, "This early on, it's mostly doing things like planning strategy."

Jed laughed.

"You should definitely handle that part of it," he said, "but what about your own workload."

Bonnie shrugged.

"Things have been quiet lately," she said, "and I'm running out of singles to pair up."

"What about Sydney," Matt asked.

Bonnie made a face.

"She's a hard case," she said, "Has she been bothering you?"

Matt shook his head.

"I think she lost interest when I told her I was seeing someone."

"Be careful with her," Bonnie warned, "She might come back at you."

"I'm not looking," Matt said, "Besides what about the mechanic who fixed C.J.'s car?"

"Oh, you mean Joe," Bonnie said, "She broke that man's heart in a million pieces. We didn't think he'd ever come out of his house again and get back to repairing cars."

"That article she wrote on me got a lot of women calling Thea," Matt said, "I had no idea it would do that."

Jed laughed.

"You must have had some idea after the publication of the PEOPLE article," he said.

"I had people shielding me from that onslaught," he said, "Don't get me wrong, some of it's flattering but it's not all it's cracked up to be."

"I'll take your word for it," Jed said.

"I just feel bad about Bonnie getting all those phone calls," Matt said.

"Don't worry about it," Bonnie said, "I'm sure Thea's getting a kick out of it."

Rhonda and Chris finished up their chili burgers. Rhonda took a closer look at her friend's plate.

"You ate two of those things," she said, incredulously, "I guess what they say about eating for two is definitely true."

"I know," Chris said, "I'm hungry all the time and sometimes for the strangest things."

Rhonda grimaced.

"Yeah I heard about your sardine and watercress kick," she said, "and what was that on top anyway?"

"Peanut butter," Chris said, smiling, "I guess you had to be there to fully appreciate it but it sure was delicious."

"What's taking C.J. so long," Rhonda asked.

Chris looked out towards the exit.

"Yeah, she's been gone a while," she said, "I wonder what she's up to now."

* * *

C.J. sat with Tammy, who seemed more relaxed though she threw glances around the park every now and then.

"You've been through a lot on your cases," Tammy said.

"Yes I have," C.J. said, "but it's been very rewarding as well. I wouldn't do anything else."

Tammy sighed.

"I feel that way about being a deputy," she said, "but then there's days when I wonder if I should keep doing it."

"I think you should," C.J. said, "You seem like a very professional, dedicated one who cares about her area. Silver Lode and the surrounding areas need more like you."

Tammy smiled.

"And we need a sheriff like Jed," she said.

Then she grew serious, pulling out a pad of paper and a pen. She wrote some information on it and handed it to C.J.

"This is my home number and my cell," she said, "If Kilroy, Nick or any of his men give you any problems, call me."

C.J. held the piece of paper in her hand

"Thank you so much," she said, "This means a lot."

Tammy stood up and shook her hand.

"No problem," she said, "Just consider it my way of thanking you for everything you've done for my people."

She and C.J. walked in separate directions and C.J. headed back to the diner where she ran into Sydney on the way.

"Do you just hang around places waiting until people come out of them," she asked.

Sydney looked indignant.

"I always have to be on the lookout for a good story," she said.

"What's his name this time?"

Sydney folded her arms.

"Good one," she said, "So how did your conversation go with that source of yours?"

C.J. shrugged.

"What source," she said, "She just wanted some legal advice on a housing dispute."

Sydney's face fell.

"I thought she had something important to say," she said, "Are you sure?"

"I can't say anymore on account of lawyer/client privilege," C.J. said, "Sorry about that."

"No problem," she said, as they looked up and saw people coming out of the diner.

Rhonda and Chris walked up to them.

"Are you done here," Rhonda asked, "We're heading back to the ranch."

C.J. nodded.

"I'm going back too," she said, "I'll see you."

* * *

They walked away and C.J. watched them go as Matt walked up to her.

"May I hitch a ride back with you," he asked.

She smiled and took his arm.

"Sure you can," she said, "I had an interesting meeting."

"Oh?"

She unlocked her car and they got inside.

"Sydney told me that someone wanted to meet with me outside," C.J. said, looking behind her as she backed out, "and she was right."

"Who was he," Matt said, looking at her.

"_She _is a deputy who works for Daniels, but she's got family who ranch the valley."

Matt nodded.

"Divided loyalties."

They headed back on the main road.

"Not really," she said, "Her family comes first like with most people and she's worried that some of the land owned by her brother might be in jeopardy."

"Is she right to be worried?"

C.J. nodded.

"No one who owns land in this valley is safe from Kilroy and his men," she said, "This situation is getting so complicated."

Matt chuckled.

"Are you surprised," he said, "It's about families and land and holding on to what's important, any one of those can lead to lots of complications but they can be real simple too."

"I know," she said, "if you need to get back to L.A…"

"I don't need to go anywhere, C.J.," he said, "I'm where I want to be with my woman."

She laughed.

"_Your _woman," she said, "I think we have to get a few things to set straight here."

"Okay, you're not _my_ woman..."

"No, it's fine, as long as you get to be my guy," she said, softly.

"Works for me," he said, lifting his brow. "Does this mean we're going steady?"

She smiled.

"I'm thinking about it," she said, "I'll tell you later tonight."

He looked at the color on her face and smiled as they continued driving.

"So what does this deputy think about Daniels," Matt said.

C.J. grinned.

"She's voting for Jed when he runs next autumn," she said, "I almost wish we could be there to see it happen."

"We're going to be back home unless you plan on moving out here," he said.

She looked at him.

"Where's home," she asked softly.

He stroked the back of her head.

"In the deep South of Texas in a little dive known as Houston."

She narrowed her eyes.

"You would really be happy living there?"

He nodded.

"I grew up there," he said, "It's always been home to me."

"I never thought it was for me, Houston," she said, "Until last year, but it's really helped me living there. It's made all the difference."

"I know that," he said, "That's why I want you to stay where you feel whole and happy."

"I love it there," she said, "but there was one thing missing and that's you."

"That's why I was getting so lonely out in L.A.," Matt admitted, "L.A.'s a nice place to visit, to spend a vacation but I never felt home there."

"But your business," she said, "What are you going to do?"

He paused.

"I'll think about that when we're done here," he said, "but I'm not going to stay in L.A. and run up high fuel bills and frequent flier miles commuting to Houston every chance I can get to see you."

"So where are you going to live," she asked, "when you move down to deep Texas."

He shrugged.

"I'm going to buy some land, have some place out in the middle of the wilderness to go back home at the end of the day," he said.

She smiled.

"I like that idea," she said, "Work in the city, play and set up house in the country. The best of two worlds."

"That's what I was thinking," he said, "I guess great minds do think alike."

* * *

Tammy sat in the office, typing up some reports for minor crimes that had occurred in the area while Daniels spoke on the phone to someone who clearly had been trying his patience for the past half hour.

"I told you, it was an accident…The driver fell asleep, it was late at night and the car drifted off the road…Yes of course, we took samples for ballistics…Can we find them, maybe…I mean they could have gotten lost in transit…I look forward to hearing from you about your impending visit, Goodbye…"

Daniels hung up the phone and Tammy noted the anger etched on his face.

"What's up sheriff," she asked casually.

He looked at her.

"Those damn feds in Denver are breathing down our necks again," he said, "Who are they to try to run ramrod over our affairs that are supposed to be handled locally?"

"Well sir, they do have jurisdiction over the local law enforcement agencies themselves," she said, "They could even investigate this agency if they wanted to do so."

He narrowed his eyes at her.

"How do you know so much about them," Daniels said, "Did you call them?"

"No sir!"

"Do you know who may have done so on the sly?"

She looked up at him, not blinking.

"No I don't sir," she said, "Is there any reason to believe anyone did?"

He shook his head.

"No, No….", he said, "Everything's just fine."

"If you say so, sir," she said, "I finished typing these reports for you sir. Would you like to sign them?"

He brushed them aside.

"Later," he said, "I've got to get to a meeting across town with the mayor."

He left the office before Tammy could say anything else.

* * *

C.J. and Matt got out of the car in front of the cabin and he took her in his arms.

"That feels so good," she said, closing her eyes against his chest.

He rubbed her back and she tilted up her head and they kissed. She pulled him closer to her so their bodies touched. He released her and gestured towards the cabin with his head.

"Come on," he said, taking her hand, "Let's take this inside."

"No argument from me," she said, still catching her breath.

They walked towards the cabin but as they reached the door, another car pulled up. Rhonda and Chris got out of the car while Bonnie parked.

C.J. turned to face them.

"What are you all doing here," she asked.

"Strategy session," Rhonda said.

"For the sheriff's election," C.J. said, "Isn't it a bit early?"  
"No for the bachelorette's party," Rhonda said, and then looked at Matt, "Sorry no men invited."

C.J. sighed.

"Can't it wait," she said, "Matt and I were planning on taking it easy."

Rhonda snorted.

"Yeah right," she said, "You have all night for that but this party is just tomorrow night and we won't even know if we have the ahem, stripper until tomorrow."

Chris turned to Rhonda.

"Come on, we're interrupting them," she said, "We can handle this without C.J."

"But she's the maid of honor," Rhonda protested, "She's got to help."

C.J. put her head in her hand.

"I can give you an hour maybe," she said, "but then I'm kicking you out."

Rhonda folded her arms.

"How rude," she said, "

C.J. turned to Matt.

"I'm a little worried about her," she said, "Maybe I can give her a little time."

He nodded.

"But keep your phone on so we can text," she said, "I might need your help to make a clean getaway."

He stroked her face with his finger.

"I'll keep it close," he said, "and in about two hours, you'll definitely be hearing from me."

"Is that a promise?"

He nodded.

"So what are you going to do Matt," Rhonda asked.

Matt winked at C.J.

"I'm going fishing," he said.

They watched him walk off and then proceeded in the cabin. Rhonda scratched her head.

"Fishing," she said, "He's not carrying any gear."

C.J. shrugged.

"I'm sure he'll find some."

Rhonda jumped onto the sofa.

"I'm sorry I pulled you away from your boyfriend but this is serious," she said, "I don't know if Sydney's serious about getting us a stripper for the party."

C.J. sank in the chair.

"Why is it so important to find one," she said, "I thought Chris' idea of a spa party was much better."

Rhonda snorted.

"You would," she said, "the only man you want to see naked just walked out of here."

C.J. sat up.

"What are you saying," she said, "I thought we were talking about your party."

"No, we were talking about naked men," Rhonda said, "There's nothing wrong with having a little fun before walking down the aisle."

"I agree," C.J. said, "but why are you so fixated on having a stripper?"

"Who's fixated," Rhonda said, "They come part and parcel of any bachelor party, right Chris?"

Chris sighed.

"Leave me out of this," she said, "I'm not taking sides."

"What I don't understand is why you're so intent on getting one," C.J. said, "I can understand if you're single and unattached but…"

"Is there any ice cream left," Chris said.

"Marble Fudge, back of the freezer," C.J. said,

"Don't kill each other before I get back," Chris said.

"Rhonda, you do love Jonathan right," C.J. continued.

Rhonda laughed.

"Of course I do," she said, "Bachelorette parties are just for fun, to kick up your heels for a few hours."

"But we don't need guys to do that, with clothes or without them," C.J. said.

Chris returned with the ice cream and some bowls and they served themselves.

Rhonda waved her spoon.

"No there doesn't have to be men at the party," she said, "but Sydney did say she had a lead on a stripper so I'm going to follow it tomorrow and see if she produces."

C.J. shook her head.

"Do you want to go with me," Rhonda asked.

"I guess I should as the maid of honor," C.J. said, "to keep you in line."

"Okay," Rhonda said, "What about you, Chris?"

Chris looked at them warily.

"I'll think about it," she said.

Someone knocked on the door. C.J. went up and answered it and saw Butterfly standing there wearing her iPod.

"I need to ask Chris something," she said, breezing past C.J.

"What's up," Chris said, looking up.

Butterfly dug her toe in the floor.

"Bonnie and I are taking some dinner out to Carter," she said, "Since Reed's in the hospital, he's all alone."

"That's real nice of you Butterfly," Chris said, "You can go with Bonnie but you're coming back with Bonnie too."

Butterfly shrugged.

"That's cool," she said, "Bonnie's bringing him some DVDs and we might sit and watch some of them with him."

Chris thought about that.

"Okay, as long as Bonnie's there with you and no sitting on the same piece of furniture," she said.

Butterfly opened her mouth in protest.

"But…"

"I mean it Butterfly," Chris said, "but to show I trust you I'll let you keep that under your hat and I won't tell Bonnie, but I'm counting on you."

Butterfly's face broke into a smile.

"Sure," she said, leaving and closing the door behind her.

"She's growing up so fast," Chris said.

"She sure is," C.J. agreed, and then looked at her phone, "Oh I just got a message and got to go."

Rhonda looked up at her.

"A meeting at this time in the evening?"

C.J. nodded picking up her things.

"Matt's found a new lead," she said.

"I thought he went fishing," Rhonda said, "Why can't you just admit that you're going to see him because you can't keep your hands off of him."

"Okay, fine," C.J. said, "I can't, so if you'll excuse me…"

Rhonda put her hands on her hips.

"Text and run, right?"

Chris waved her arm.

"Just let her go," she said.

"Thank you," C.J. said, and walked out the door.

* * *

She went to the barn and saddled up Sienna, who seemed eager for an evening ride. They crossed several meadows past groves of trees until they reached the lake where C.J. soon found Matt sitting on one of the banks, fishing. An electric lantern and a couple of beers sat next to him.

She dismounted and tied her horse next to Whiskey. He heard her approach and gazed up at her.

"You're really fishing," he said.

"Why Ms Parsons, you sound disappointed," he said, motioning her to sit next to him.

She did and studied his pole with its taut line cast out at an angle into the water, where it disappeared below the surface.

"Doesn't look like you're getting much of a bite," she said, "Maybe all the fish are asleep."

"I like it here," he said, "It's nice and quiet…"

Her eyes flashed.

"And private?"

He smiled.

"That too."

He drew her into his arms and she rested against him, closing her eyes.

"Are you going to fall asleep on me, counselor?"

He felt her shake her head.

"No, it's just so nice to relax," she said, "You're the one place I always feel nice and safe."

He wrapped his arms around her.

"I'll always be there," he said.

She turned around and kissed him. He responded, pulling her down on top of him, knocking down the fishing pole.

"Oops," she said, grabbing it," you don't want to lose this in case you do catch a fish."

"I already caught the one I want," he said, kissing her while sliding his hands beneath her shirt.

"Mmm, that feels nice," she whispered.

Suddenly, the brush rustled and they both sat up.

"What's that," she said.

"It might just be an animal," he said.

Suddenly they heard a horse whinny in the distance, a noise which sent a chill through C.J.

"It sounds like trouble," she said.

He nodded and helped her to her feet. They ran to their horses and got in their saddles.

"I think it's coming from the west," Matt said, pulling the reins

Both of them took off down the meadow in a gallop.


	35. Chapter 35

Chapter 35-- Here's the latest chapter of this fan fiction. I hope you like it and thanks for the comments!

* * *

C.J. and Matt rode their horses hard across the meadow, following a trail of smoke they saw coming from the direction of the old Wyatt ranch. They saw several other men on horses coming from different directions. By the time they got to the source of the billowing smoke, not much of the old barn remained.

C.J. dismounted and ran over to where the flames still licked out of the piles of lumber which had fallen from the rafters above. Carter rode up with Butterfly riding behind him and pulled up to where the others had tied their horses.

C.J. gave Butterfly a piercing look but soon focused on the fire.

"We're going to have to let it burn out," Jed said, "It's mostly rotted wood anyway."

"We'll get some shovels and dig a fire trench around it," C.J. said.

"I brought some with me," Carter said, reaching into where he fastened them to his saddle. He and Butterfly untied them and handed them out.

Matt and C.J. started digging a shallow ditch around the burning barn to separate it from the rest of the foliage so that the whole meadow wouldn't go up in flames if the wind shifted directions. Fortunately, nature had cooperated, providing only a gentle breeze with a hint of moisture in it.

"I think this should do it," Matt said, as he met up with C.J. in their digging, "It should burn itself out in a few hours."

Jed and C.J. walked over to examine what was left of the Wyatt's barn and Jed kicked some smoldering planks over.

"It can't be an accident," he said, "There is no electrical supply and no lightning strike within miles."

"So what do you think happened," C.J. asked, "Arson?"

"We'll have to wait until it's completely burned out and do an inspection," Jed said, "It would help if we had some arson specialists here."

"What are the odds that Sheriff Daniels would send us some of his," C.J. said.

Jed laughed derisively.

"Slim to none," he said.

Matt looked at the fire.

"I think I might be able to get a friend from Denver to send someone out," he said, "but even if it's arson and we could find traces of the accelerant, it's going to be hard to prove who did it."

C.J. sighed.

"We know who did it," she said, "I'm just not sure why they did it. No one's occupied this land for a while."

Carter walked up to her.

"Maybe they wanted to start a larger fire," he said, "if the wind had blown the other way…"

He didn't need to finish. She knew that his family's ranch lay in the other direction. So was Reed's family now a target? It would be easy to assume that were the case after the attack on Reed out I the meadow.

"There's no rhyme or reason to whoever's doing these attacks," C.J. said, "I think they've got a loose cannon in the mix somewhere."

"If that's true, then someone could get killed even if that weren't there intention," Carter said.

"They've already tried to kill people," C.J. said, "Three of us in the car wreck and when they sabotaged Houston's jet."

Jed nodded.

"We have some idea why this is becoming so dangerous," he said, "if our theories about the geological surveys are correct."

"Well, I'd better head back," Carter said, getting back on his horse, "I'm the one watching the homestead tonight."

"We'll take Butterfly back with us," C.J. offered.

He nodded his head and rode off. C.J. folded her arms and looked at the younger girl.

"Why were you with him," she said, "What happened to Bonnie?"

"Carter's mother needed a ride back from town," Butterfly said, "Her car broke down. Bonnie left before we knew about the fire."

"It's okay, Butterfly," C.J. said, "I like Carter and at least this way his mother will be back home by the time he gets back."

"I hope that means that Reed will be coming home tomorrow," Butterfly said, "He seemed to be feeling better when he visited."

"I'll take her back," C.J. said, "Chris is probably waiting for her."

Matt nodded.

"We'll leave the other ranchers here to keep an eye on the fire," he said, getting on his horse.

"I'll see you later," Jed said.

* * *

Matt and C.J. rode back to the ranch and headed inside, with Butterfly running a few steps ahead of them telling everyone what she had witnessed. Thea threw her hand over her face when she heard about the fire.

"We're very lucky the winds aren't kicking up tonight," she said, as they all sat around and ate one of Bonnie's prize-winning pies.

"Butterfly, what were you doing out there anyway," Chris asked.

"Oh let her alone," Rhonda said, dipping her fork in the pie, "She's back safe and sound."

"So who started the fire," Thea asked.

"Well, we pretty much know who did it," C.J. said, "but we can't prove it and it's not likely that we're going to get any assistance from Daniels."

Thea shook her head, with a sigh.

"That fire could have taken up a couple ranches," she said, "That's something that the sheriff should be taking seriously."

"Which is why we need a new sheriff," C.J. said, "I'm so excited that Jed's tossed his hat in the ring."

"I'm still going to try to go file a report with Daniels tomorrow," Matt said.

"Good luck," C.J. said, "but you're right, we need to lay a paper trail on all these illegal acts."

Thea sighed.

"I wish there could be something more promising than that," she said, "Let's just be thankful the fire wasn't worse and that no one got hurt."

C.J. and Matt got up and took their dishes to the sink.

"Are you leaving already," Rhonda asked.

"Yeah, I'll meet you tomorrow for you ahem, interview with the…"

Rhonda smiled.

"Stripper," she said, "I hope Sydney was serious when she told us she knew of one."

* * *

C.J. snuggled up to Matt on the living room couch where they watched one of the movies that Butterfly had left at the cabin before moving in to the ranch house.

"Is there a point to all these car chases," C.J. asked, reaching for some popcorn.

Matt kissed her bare shoulder.

"I know. Whatever happened to those days when they used horses?"

She laughed softly, handing him the popcorn.

"Hmmm, I guess they got scarce after the invention of the automobile," she said, "but why don't these characters ever get out of their cars and just work out their differences instead of chasing each other all over the city?"

Matt smiled.

"Like hire a lawyer," he said.

"Only in the most serious cases," C.J. said, "just to keep the peace."

Matt studied the screen.

"What I don't understand is why it looks like they've gone down the same street about four times," he said.

C.J. laughed again.

"And don't they realize that car chases just aren't as exciting in real life and that when you crash your car, it actually hurts?"

Matt agreed.

"You'd never know that from looking at how these actors just smash their cars into a building or light pole and then jump right out of them and continue chasing the bad guy…or the good guy…or their ex-wife."

C.J. rolled her eyes.

"When the truth is, you often are stuck crawling out of some twisted burning piece of metal and you can barely walk for several days."

Matt looked at her.

"Maybe we should have gone for one of those, what do they call them 'chick flicks'?"

She stroked his arm.

"I wouldn't think a movie like that would be your cup of tea," she said.

He raised his brow at her.

"You mean you haven't you learned anything by now about movies?"

"What do you mean," she asked.

"That it's not about the movie," he said, "It's about who's with you when you're watching them and it's much better watching them at home."

"Popcorn's better," she winked at him, "and cheaper."

"There's fewer people around," he said.

She nodded slowly.

"I think you have a point," she said, "and I doubt they'd let us in a movie theater dressed like this."

He pulled the blanket over them and she wrapped her arms around him, enveloping herself in his warmth.

"Probably not," he said, smiling.

"I love the time we get to spend together even if it's crazy a lot of the time," she said, "I'm so glad I took that chance."

He looked at her and stroked the hair off of her face.

"I'm just glad we're both here together whatever we're doing," he said, "but I like these moments best."

"Better than the movies, the chases and the Molotov cocktails," she asked.

His lips met hers, until they came up for breath.

"Much better," he said.

* * *

C.J. and her friends drove out to Silver Lode to meet up with Sydney who had promised to introduce them to the perfect stripper for Rhonda's bachelorette party.

"Where's Matt going," Rhonda asked.

"He and the other ranchers are going to clean up the debris from the fire," C.J. said, "and look for clues to how it started."

Rhonda sighed.

"You mean who started it."

C.J. rubbed her eyes.

"We don't have any proof that it was arson but I think you're right."

"So what do you think they'll find?"

C.J. shook her head.

"Not much," she said, "The building was old and it's all gone now except for a pile of burnt out lumber."

"Maybe you should get an expert," Chris suggested.

"Houston might get his friend from Denver to send someone in," C.J. said, "We all know that the current sheriff's not going to do anything."

Rhonda folded her arms.

"They should get him for dereliction of duty," she said.

"I think the voters will get him for that in the next election," C.J. said, "and vote in Jed."

"That would be so great," Rhonda said, "So Matt left early this morning."

C.J. nodded.

"They wanted to check on the ranchers overseeing the injunction zone," she said, "They change shifts every six hours."

"Did they see anything last night," Chris asked.

"Not until it was too late," C.J. said.

"Damn," Rhonda said, "I wish they'd been caught red handed."

"Then it might have gotten dangerous," C.J. said, "This is a really tough situation and it seems to be getting worse."

"Well, put it out of your mind for a few hours while we meet with Sydney," Rhonda said, "This will be fun."

C.J. doubted that but she had promised she would help her friend and somewhere in the unwritten list of duties for maids of honor, there had to be a section on bachelorette parties. She turned the car into the parking lot near the diner and saw Sydney and her ever present cameraman, Joseph waiting for them. After parking, she and her friends got out and approached Sydney, a bit warily.

"I didn't think you'd show," Sydney said, "He's waiting in the diner."

They followed her inside the building and sure enough, seated in the far corner was a young man that looked suspiciously like the man who had repaired C.J.'s car.

"It's…the auto repair man," Chris said, "I remember him."

C.J. and Rhonda looked at Chris.

"Are you sure," Rhonda asked.

C.J. nodded.

"He fixed my windshield and after it was sabotaged," she said.

Joe looked up at them, from his menu.

Rhonda scrutinized him for a moment.

"He's kind of cute," she said, "No make that really cute."

Chris looked closer.

"He looks like he's in great physical shape," she said, "Look at the biceps."

Sydney watched them inspect her guest. Rhonda turned around and faced her, frowning.

"Didn't you sleep with this buy and then dump him," she said.

The journalist shrugged.

"The relationship ran its course," she said, "not that I don't have nice memories of our time spent together."

"Why did he volunteer to do this," Rhonda asked.

"He's got a great looking body and he's proud to show it off," Sydney said, "Do you want to meet him?"

"I don't know," C.J. said, "It feels really strange to think of a guy as a stripper who just fixed my car."

"Don't be a spoilsport," Sydney said, "Come on."

She introduced them to Joe who smiled and shook hands with all of them before they all sat down to order some food and talk business.

* * *

Matt kicked a piece of burnt out lumber and then walked back to where Jed and Reed stood.

"They must have used something that evaporated quickly," he said, "No trace of the obvious accelerants."

"Do you think it's the same men who hit me," Reed asked.

He had been released that morning and had raced back to the ranch, to get back to work. But before that, he had ridden out to check the ruins of the fire.

"It wouldn't surprise me," Matt said, "but linking them through forensic evidence is where we need help."

"Maybe you should call your friend," Jed said, "We've got to nail these guys before they really hurt or kill someone."

Matt looked back at the rubble and nodded.

* * *

Rhonda took a seat next to Joe and began to talk business in a manner which made C.J. and Chris feel a bit uncomfortable.

"So how much experience do you have…stripping," she asked.

He looked confused.

"You're not talking about stripping cars, right?"

Rhonda pursed her lips.

"No we're not," she said, "You see, we're hosting a bachelorette party and we were looking for some…entertainment and you came highly recommended."

Joe smiled.

"Really," he said, "I worked as a Chippendale Dancer to put myself through college until I dropped out of medical school to become an auto mechanic."

C.J. leaned forward in interest despite herself.

"Why'd you do that?"

Joe picked up his burger and took a bite of it.

"I got burned out," he said, "The human body is an amazing thing but I'd much rather see live ones than dead ones."

"But you work on cars now," C.J. asked.

"If a car dies on you, it can be brought back to life," Joe mused, "A person can't. I returned home from medical school and it didn't take me long to remember everything I liked about this town. The people, the amazing outdoors and a steady line of cars that need fixing."

Rhonda folded her arms.

"Wait a minute, didn't this woman right here break your heart," she said.

Joe remained silent then nodded after looking at Sydney.

"Yes she did and I spent sometime in the mountains reevaluating my life," he said, "but as you can see, I'm back, I'm fixing cars and it's all water under the bridge right now."

Sydney harrumphed, not too pleased with that answer.

"Yes…water under…the bridge," she echoed.

Joe looked at the women.

"So who's the lucky bride," he asked.

Sydney sighed.

"I told you Joe, it's Rhonda sitting right here," she said, "these other two women are members of her bridal court."

"They all look so beautiful," he said, "are the rest of you married?"

Chris smiled.

"I am," she said.

C.J. looked back at Joe.

"I'm not…"

"But she's got a boyfriend with an amazing body," Rhonda finished, "who's been keeping her quite busy."

Joe smiled.

"Ah young love," he said, "The most wonderful thing. How are you faring?"

C.J. smiled.

"Well enough," she said, "I'm very happy with him but we just got together."

Rhonda snorted.

"They knew each other most of their lives," she said, "We all knew they were going to get it on some day. They just had to buy a clue."

"Rhonda, this meeting is about hiring a stripper," she said, "not about me."

Sydney took out her notepad to jot some more information down

"So C.J., your boyfriend is coming in for the wedding," she asked.

C.J. just stared at her.

"Well yeah," she said, "He wouldn't miss it."

"How does he feel about you participating in the wedding of your ex-boyfriend," Sydney asked.

"Is this for an article," C.J. said.

"Maybe," Sydney said, "I still haven't decided whether or not I'm going to do that feature on Jonathan and the women in his life."

Rhonda rolled her eyes.

"But you were one of them," she said, "and you said, you're not including yourself."

Sydney sighed.

"Well, I'm not because a good reporter never puts herself in the story," she said, "So what is it C.J.?"

C.J. shrugged.

"He doesn't mind at all," he said, "Rhonda and I are friends too and he's going to be an usher anyway."

Sydney started writing this all down.

"Really," she said, "So he and Jonathan are good friends?"

C.J. had to think about that.

"Well…"

"I'm honored to have him serve as an usher at our wedding," Rhonda said.

Sydney's head popped up.

"So your significant other is going to be an usher?"

C.J. nodded.

"This is just getting more and more interesting," Sydney said.

Joe cleared his throat.

"Are you finished here with me, because I have a couple of cars on deck to repair by this evening," he said.

Sydney waved her arm.

"You can go now," she said.

Joe looked at Rhonda.

"You'll be perfect," she said, "I'll give you a call before tonight."

He widened his eyes.

"It's tonight," he said, "Not a lot of notice."

Rhonda looked apologetic.

"I'm sorry about that, but this wedding's got a schedule and tonight was the only time I could fit this party in."

He nodded and said he'd be there before leaving the restaurant.

Sydney sat down next to them.

"So I'm going to bring Joseph here to film the event for our online edition of the newspaper," she said, "Won't that be wonderful?"

The three other women looked at themselves, wondering what they had gotten into before deciding it would be a most interesting evening ahead of them.

* * *

Matt and Jed drank some coffee they had brought with them as they discussed their own bachelor party which would take place the following day, with hopefully the groom in attendance.

"We don't know exactly when he'll be flying in," Jed said.

"He's got to be there at his own party," Reed said, "We're doing some late night fishing, right?"

Jed nodded.

"At the far end of the lake," he said, "Are you game Matt?"

"I like to fish," he said, "I've been meaning to since I got here but there's been a lot of distractions."

"It should be a peaceful evening tomorrow," Jed said, "Nice moon. The fish like that."

Shaking his head, Matt walked back from the rubble to search the other side of it, sifting through it carefully with his gloved hands. Suddenly, he saw something catch his eye and he leaned over to examine it more closely, not believing what he had found.


	36. Chapter 36

Chapter 36--- Here's the latest chapter of this story. Hope you like it and thanks for the comments.

* * *

Matt stooped to pick up the object on the ground, handling it very carefully with his fingers.

"What is it," Jed asked.

"It looks like a class ring," Matt said, inspecting it, "but it's a bit charred."

Jed frowned.

"It's a pretty funny place to find one, don't you think?"

"I agree," Matt said, "Do you have anything to put it in?"

"I'll check the saddle bag," Jed said, "Shouldn't we leave it for the arson investigators?"

Matt sighed.

"They're not coming," he said, "You can bet that Daniels knows who did this and is going to be obstructing any investigation."

Jed nodded, resignedly.

"So what are you going to do," he asked.

"Contact my friend who works for the feds in Denver and Fed-Ex it to him."

* * *

C.J. and Rhonda walked to the diner where they would be holding their bachelorette party in the banquet room. They walked around the spacious room with deer and other animal trophies on the wall, considering the possibilities.

"Those have got to go," Rhonda said, pointing at the trophies, "It just looks too much like they're watching us."

C.J. laughed.

"You're kidding, right," she said.

"No I'm not," Rhonda said, "I want the ambiance to be perfect for my party."

"I'm sure the decor here would only add to the experience," C.J. said.

Rhonda looked skeptical.

"I think it gives it too much of a masculine feel for what's supposed to be ladies' night," she said, "Well, maybe the stuffed fish can stay up."

Sydney walked in tailed by Joseph.

"So are you getting ready for the big party," she asked.

She directed Joseph to turn on the camera and aim it at Rhonda. She pushed it away and put her hands on her hips.

"What do you think you're doing," she said.

"I'm filming the preparations for the big bachelorette party," Sydney said, "I need to get this footage on the Web site so it will build up the anticipation and suspense for our readers."

"Suspense," Rhonda said, "What's so mysterious about hosting a bachelorette party before my wedding?"

"Normally nothing," Sydney said, "but we've got a huge and very compelling storyline here of local boy leaves town and makes good fighting criminals but returns with the woman he loves to get married among his family and friends."

"Honey," Rhonda said, "That happens every day somewhere."

Sydney smiled widely.

"But not in Silver Lode."

"Maybe you have a point," Rhonda conceded.

"This has been one of the most exciting months," Sydney said, "First we have one of the sexiest bachelors in America grace our small town and now the Wedding of the Decade."

Rhonda widened her eyes.

"Really…the decade," she said.

Sydney nodded.

"Readership online and off has been way up since the article on Matt came out," she said.

C.J. smiled.

"I know," she said, "Thea's been fielding phone calls from female readers all week by the dozens."

Sydney nodded.

"Same at my office," she said, "In fact, I'm thinking of making a business proposal to Matt so will he be in town today?

That perked their interest.

"Business proposal," C.J. asked, "Like what?"

Sydney flashed another smile.

"I came up with another brilliant idea," she said.

"And…," Rhonda said.

"I'm going to ask Matt if he would like his own weekly column," Sydney said.

C.J. and Rhonda just stared.

"Get out of town," Rhonda finally said, "A column?"

"Why yes," Sydney said, "It can be on whatever topics he likes, like his work or what he looks for in a woman."

Rhonda looked at C.J.

"That will an interesting article," she noted.

"He's not much into writing," C.J. said, "He's very physical, an outdoors kind of guy."

Sydney shrugged.

"Well, he can dictate his column into a recorder," she said, then snapped her fingers, "Or better yet, video blogging, which will play to his great looks."

"Come again," Rhonda said, "Matt's got his hands full working on this case involving these developers who are out to steal all of the land they can get their greedy hands on."

Sydney sniffed.

"Oh that," she said, "It will blow over, but having his own blog in a renowned newspaper can do wonders for his business."

Rhonda tried not to laugh.

"Yeah, a renowned paper like yours with a huge circulation," she said, "but he's very busy and then there's his personal life…"

"He can write about that too," Sydney said.

Rhonda lifted her brow at C.J. who just looked away.

"He might be in town later," C.J. said, "but that depends on how the arson investigation is going."

Sydney looked confused.

"You mean that old barn that burned down," she said, "Why would there be an investigation there?"

"Because someone set it on fire," C.J. said.

"Accident," Sydney said, dismissively, "at least that's what Sheriff Daniels stated in a press release from his office."

C.J. looked at Rhonda who rolled her eyes.

"Why isn't that so surprising," Rhonda said, "that they would write it off as one so quickly."

"It was no accident," C.J. said, "We rode out last night and there couldn't be any other cause for the fire."

"It could have been bums or transients taking advantage of the fact that it was abandoned and falling apart," Sydney said.

"It also happens to be standing on a parcel of land that's heavily under dispute between the ranchers and Kilroy's developers," C.J. said, "and we've already seen what they're capable of doing to get what they want."

"So you say," Sydney said, "and I agree some of it looks suspicious but these land deals are always better than pills when it comes to putting our readers to sleep."

Rhonda pursed her lips.

"So you just want to keep them awake with stories about weddings and bachelorette parties attended by exes of the town's promising son who made good?"

Sydney sighed.

"Hey it sells papers," she said, "People love the personal angle over the business angle."

"I think the ranchers would disagree," C.J. said, "I can't think of a story with personal roots that's more compelling."

"Maybe," she said, "But let's talk about this party. How many people have RSVPed?"

Joseph dutifully turned his camera towards Rhonda, awaiting her response.

"A few," Rhonda said, "We're keeping it small. Bonnie's bringing the food and it's just a bunch of us girls kicking back before I walk down the aisle."

Joseph aimed the camera at Sydney.

"And there you have it ladies and gentlemen as the countdown towards Wedding 2009 continues with the Bachelorette Party being held in town tonight. We will bring it all to you live," Sydney said.

With that footage filmed, Sydney left followed by her cameramen. Both C.J. and Rhonda breathed a sigh of relief.

"I thought she'd never leave," C.J. said.

"Yeah, she had just decided to ask Matt to do an expose on his life including his personal relationships which means…"

"I know what it means," C.J. said, "I don't want our relationship on page one."

Rhonda looked at her.

"Why not?"

C.J. struggled to find the words.

"Because everything that's happened to me…us in the past year or so has been on the news, including the most personal and painful things," she said, "I want a break from that so I can enjoy spending time with Houston without the cameras around. So we can have some time to ourselves."

Rhonda patted her shoulder.

"I can understand that."

"She's really gone around the bend about your wedding to Jonathan," C.J. noted.

Rhonda shook her head.

"They've taken my wedding and hyped it up so much," she said, "All I wanted was to marry my beloved in his home town in front of his friends, not this circus."

C.J. smiled at her friend.

"Then why don't you tell her that," she said, "or if you can't do that, just beg off. That worked for Houston and me."

"When," Rhonda asked.

C.J. laughed.

"We ran into her when we were in Denver," she said, "Actually, when we were outside of Denver."

Rhonda smiled broadly.

"Where you two were…getting closer," she said.

"Well, she had us sitting in a restaurant talking to a source who turned out to be useful," C.J. said.

"But you had other things on your mind," Rhonda guessed, "Other things you wanted to do."

C.J. nodded.

"Yeah, we did," she said, "so we just begged off and told her we needed some rest."

"You know if she found out that you two were an item," Rhonda said, "You might get your own feature story about it."

C.J. sighed.

"I don't want that," she said, "I love my relationship with Houston but if she were to write about anything involving me, I would want it to be about the ranchers' lawsuits."

Rhonda snorted.

"She sure doesn't seem that interested in the scandal going on right under her nose," she said.

"She just can't believe that any of the political officials and people like Sheriff Daniels could ever be rotten to the core."

"What would it take to convince someone like her," she said.

C.J. looked doubtful.

"If nothing that's happened has convinced her by now," C.J. said, "Then I'm not sure there's anything out there that could."

* * *

Matt got off the phone with Kent in Denver and promised to mail him the ring that he'd found. He had tried to identify its origin but the soot had seared its way into the metal making that impossible. Kent assured him that they had chemicals that they could use to clean up the ring and thus make it easier to figure out what school it represented.

He and Jed rode back to the ranch house and ran into Thea who was fixing some lunch.

"You guys hungry," she said, looking at them, "silly question."

She served them some fried potatoes and eggs, which they dove into with great enthusiasm.

"I did get a call from Sheriff Daniels," she said, "He said there's no need to do any further investigation because it's an accident."

"Not according to what we found," Matt said, "I think whatever accelerant they used evaporated quickly but someone left his class ring behind."

"A lot of men wear them," Thea said, "but not a lot of ranchers because jewelry's a bit of a hazard out on the range."

"So it could be some guy in town," Matt said, "or someone they hired from out of town."

Jed set his jaw grimly.

"We know it's Kilroy and his guys," he said.

"That's one bet I'm not taking," Matt said, "Sabotaging airplanes, running cars off roads and now arsons, is there anything these men won't do?"

"I don't think they've placed limitations on their actions Matt," Jed said, "Not even murder if it comes to that."

Matt sighed.

"They've already tried that," he said, "C.J. and her friends weren't supposed to survive that car wreck and I'm sure she and I were supposed to be splattered over the Rockies when my plane went down."

"But you're both still here," Thea said, "Doing great work to help people. Most of the people in town and living in the valley appreciate what you're doing."

"Everyone but the developers and the politicians they've paid off," Jed said, "and I bet that includes Daniels."

"Which is why as everyone has said again and again, you need to run against him," Thea said.

"I plan to," he said, "but in the meantime, he's a problem that has to be dealt with. Are we going to wait until someone does get killed and he labels it an accident?"

"I don't plan to," Matt said, "not since C.J. seems to be the main target."

"Has she received any more threats," Jed asked.

"Not in the past day or so," Matt said, "but maybe they're done threatening."

Thea looked up.

"You think they're planning something else?"

"I'm thinking that we can't be sure what these people are going to do," Matt said, "Their attacks have been haphazard but they've all had serious outcomes."

"Outcomes that could have been worse," Jed said.

"That's true," Matt said, with a sigh, "but how long are we going to be that lucky?"

"Maybe the unpredictable nature of them indicates a power struggle among the developers," Jed said.

Matt stroked his jaw.

"That could be," he said, "Nick seems to be the worse between him and Kilroy and I'm pretty sure that he's not convinced that Kilroy's tactics are going to get the job done."

"Well, we've just got to think of a better way to fight back," Thea said, "All of us so that none of us are vulnerable as individuals."

"We've been working on that," Jed said, "and you've great with the phone tree getting all those people out on short notice."

Thea smiled.

"I'm just doing my part to preserve our way of life."

* * *

Rhonda got off of her cell phone.

"That's Jonathan," she said, "He might be flying in tonight or tomorrow."

"So he's going to make it in time for the wedding," C.J. said.

Rhonda scoffed.

"Of course he is," she said, "not that I ever had any doubts."

C.J.'s face grew serious.

"You really shouldn't about him," she said, "He keeps his promises."

"I know he's kept everyone he's made to me," Rhonda said, "Fran's going to be coming in too and she might make it to the party tonight."

"That will be great," C.J. said, "She's just what you need to liven things up."

"That she will," Rhonda said, "Hopefully motherhood's toned her down a bit."

"I doubt it," C.J. said, "Well, I've got to head to City Hall and check to see if they ever found those records."

"But I thought you said that Edna, the keeper of the records said that Kilroy and his partners walked right out with them," Rhonda said.

"I've got most of what I need," C.J. said, "but there might be a couple records I missed."

"Then go," Rhonda said, "I'll be okay here. Chris and Bonnie will be dropping by later to help me."

"What about Joe," C.J. asked.

"He knows when to show up and what to do," Rhonda said, "at least I hope."

C.J. shrugged.

"He's a car mechanic," she said, "Even if he used to be an exotic dancer, it was probably years ago."

Rhonda rubbed her hands together.

"You know what they say about riding bicycles," she said, "and taking off clothes comes second nature to most men."

C.J. rolled her eyes and laughed.

"You are incorrigible Rhonda," she said, "I hope Jonathan knows what he's getting himself into."

Rhonda ran her hand through her hair.

"I think he's marrying because I'm incorrigible," she said, "All this partying and wedding planning aside, I can't wait to see him."

C.J. watched the emotions play out on Rhonda's face and she knew her friend was in love.

* * *

Matt parked his car in front of Bonnie's store and ran inside to mail his package containing the ring to Denver.

"It's strange that this ring would just show up amid a burned out barn," she said.

"I'm having Kent send some photos of it back when it's cleaned up," Matt said, "Hopefully someone in town has seen a ring like that before."

"Unless it's a common one," Bonnie said, "from a local high school or university."

"Then we'll have a much larger suspect pool," Matt said, "but it will be a start."

Bonnie shook her head as she took his credit card.

"This is getting so nasty," she said, "Mayor Parker sure bought himself in with some bad boys."

"The money he's probably receiving from Kilroy and his partners is probably a powerful incentive," Matt said.

"That doesn't make it right," Bonnie said, "We need some honesty and integrity at City Hall."

"Sounds like someone who's thinking about running for office."

Bonnie laughed.

"One political candidate in the family's enough," she said, "and I'd sure like to see Sheriff Daniels go down."

"I think he will," Matt said, "then there'll be some justice in this town."

Bonnie looked at him.

"I know you and C.J. have had a difficult time here with some very questionable people," she said, "but Silver Lode's a really great town and it's a good place to raise a family."

Matt nodded.

"I think so," he said, "Lot of good people here and wide open space to build a home and a life."

"Yeah, sure is," Bonnie said, "I was raised her and I've never felt like leaving."

"C.J. really loves it here," he said.

"Well, she didn't come here under the best of circumstances," Bonnie said, "but this time around, she gets to be herself, doing something to help people that she really loves. Despite everything that gets thrown at her, I can see she's really enjoying herself."

"She's certainly in her element," Matt agreed, "It's nice to see her so happy."

"Well her work is only part of that," Bonnie said, "She's also got you and that's what really matters."

"Indeed it does," he said, "Well, thank you for mailing this package for me and for the conversation."

She smiled.

"No problem," she said, "You're lucky I was still here though."

"Why?"

"I'm closing early today," Bonnie said, "I've got a party to help set up."

The door opened and in walked Nick.

"I've got something to mail," he said, "I heard you were closing early."

Bonnie nodded.

"You made it just at the right time," she said, "So what are you mailing?"

He handed her the package. While she calculated the postage, he looked at Matt.

"Fancy running into you here," he said, "Mailing something?"

"In fact, I am," Matt said, "Something I found last night. I'm trying to find out who it belongs to."

Nick raised his brows.

"Oh?"

"I found it in what's left of the Wyatt barn," Matt said, "I'm sure someone's looking for it."

"And what was that," Nick said, casually as he handed Bonnie the money.

"I'll be circulating photos of it when it comes back," Matt said, "The feds are analyzing it."

Nick shrugged.

"Why didn't you just give it to Sheriff Daniels?"

Matt stared right at him.

"Because he's working for the wrong side," he said.

"The feds won't get involved in a local fire, even if it's arson," Nick said, "Besides the barn that burned was abandoned."

"It was located on a contested piece of property," Matt said, "That might interest them since the injunction that was supposed to limit access and protect it was instituted by the federal courts so I imagine they'll send a team in a day or so."

Nick's face paled a bit and his smile wavered. He took one last look at them and walked out of the store.


	37. Chapter 37

Chapter 37---Here's the latest chapter of this fanfiction. I hope you like it and thanks for the comments and for reading!

* * *

Rhonda looked around the club room of the diner, approvingly. After an afternoon of decorating, it seemed ready for her bachelorette party. Now all she needed was her stripper and her guests. Oh wait, and the food until she remembered that Bonnie had prepared that herself. The fish trophy had stayed up in the center of the wall but all the other stuffed animal heads had come down and were locked away in a storage room. Careful reminders of the feminine nature of the party had been used to decorate the room instead. It might make the Elk membership in town break out in hives to see what had been done to their den but it would make for a great setting for a group of women to let their hair loose.

Chris wandered in and looked around.

"Wow, you've really turned this place into…"

Rhonda smiled.

"I'd like to take some photos of it before we convert it back to a men's lair," she said, "but I think I've really outdone myself."

"I don't see Sydney and her crew here," Chris noted, "Did they change their minds and decide to cover real news for a change?"

Rhonda shrugged.

"She and that camera guy came earlier to stake out positions," she said, "for camera angles or something like that."

"We'll have to behave ourselves," Chris said, "if everything we do or say is going to be on the internet."

"I'm sure they'll edit it," Rhonda said, "They have to, to be able to have it on their Web site."

Chris looked around.

"Where's C.J.," she asked.

"She's on her way," Rhonda said, "She's got to check some records at City Hall."

"Not the ones that are missing," Chris said, "They'll never turn up and it might take her all night to find anything useful."

Rhonda made a face.

"Edna will never let her get away with staying there past closing hours," she said, "So don't worry. C.J. promised me she'd be here."

* * *

C.J. sighed as she checked the boxes in the records room and found them still empty. She thought about questioning Edna again but didn't think it would do much good. The records were definitely gone and most likely in the hands of Kilroy and his partners. C.J. was sure that Kilroy had sent Nick in there to charm Edna into dropping her usual tenacious guard over the files long enough so that he could remove them. It didn't matter a whole lot because she had been getting other copies of the missing documents piecemeal from various places and sources but there were several crucial ones missing.

She sat down and thought about where the records could be and then she thought about Rhonda who was about to walk down the aisle with a man who had once been her own boyfriend. It had taken her a while to get used to the idea of them dating and then becoming an item. Still, the engagement had shocked her. She supported their plans to get married because she wanted both of her friends to be happy. She just hoped that two vastly different people could make it work. Of course, she found herself asking the same questions about her new relationship with her best friend, Matt, who shared many qualities with her including value systems. Not that she loved him any less but because in her life she had never so wanted a relationship to work. And face it, both she and Matt had histories of having relationships end in tragic ways, either through death or falling in love with someone who wasn't what they appeared to be. And she knew Matt had been left at the altar by Elizabeth who found herself unable or unwilling to cope with his life unless he changed it and deeply hurt by that. She would never hurt him that way.

The door opened and she turned to see who walked inside. Edna looked around the room, inspecting it to make sure everything stayed in order and then looked at C.J.

"You sure like to spend a lot of time in our records room," she asked, dusting off a spot here and there with a handkerchief she carried.

C.J. shrugged.

"That's the life of a lawyer," she said, "You spend countless hours looking at all sorts of public records."

Edna sniffed.

"You haven't brought your fellow back," she said.

C.J. suppressed a smile.

"He's been quite busy helping me with this case elsewhere."

"That's probably for the best," Edna said, looking dourly at the new table, "Less distraction that way."

C.J. rubbed her eyes.

"I've still been trying to look for those missing records," she said, "Have they been found?"

"I've had the deputy take a report," Edna said, "But I don't expect much so I'm going to call the FBI later on today."

C.J. raised her brows.

"I don't know if they have much jurisdiction," she said, "But if they can help…"

Edna nodded.

"I take the removal of these public records most seriously," she said, sternly, "They will be found and the perpetrators will be brought to justice."

C.J. bit her lip to keep from responding. She thought that Edna was in for a rude awakening if she wasn't aware of how justice worked in Silver Lode already.

"I hope so," she said, as Edna left the room and she got back to searching for records she knew she'd probably never find. Still, she had to keep trying but she thought of all the other things she would rather be doing.

She told herself she had decided to attend Rhonda's bachelor party to keep her friend in line mere days before she was set to walk down the aisle with Jonathan. But she admitted to herself it might be fun to kick back and relax with other women for a while. All of her friends were either married or about to marry men they really loved, so how much mischief could be done? And she herself wasn't close to the aisle but she had found the man she wanted to spend her time with, as much time as possible. Like right now.

Looking at the clock, she sighed, thinking it was time to give up the search and head off to help Rhonda get ready for her party so she picked up her items to leave when out of the corner of her eye, she found a CD on the floor, near the last row of records. She walked over to pick it up wondering why she didn't notice it before. It appeared to be in good condition, so looking around the room wary of Edna's presence, she tucked it in her purse before leaving the records room.

* * *

Matt and Jed were sitting back at the ranch house discussing the meeting they were planning to hold when Thea came in.

"Hey I just heard from Jonathan and he's flying in tonight," she said, "He'll call back and give us a time to expect him."

"We're going to be at the bar tonight talking with some ranchers on strategy," Jed said, "Maybe he can meet us there."

Thea nodded.

"His past federal background might be useful in this fight," she said.

"What we really need are some federal agents to help enforce that injunction," Jed said, "Maybe it's time to ask Jonathan if he has any contacts."

"Didn't he pretty much burn his bridges with those boys," Matt said.

Thea and Jed looked at each other.

"I'm sorry to put it in such blunt words but he walked away from his job there," Matt said.

Jed nodded.

"Yes he did," he said, "and in my opinion he did the right thing."

"I'd be the last person to ever argue otherwise," Matt said, "and it won't hurt to ask him but I wouldn't expect much from his old friends."

"Nothing ventured, nothing gained," Jed said.

"Still, it will be good to have him there to play a few rounds of beer and play some pool," Reed said, walking into the kitchen, "No one's seen him in these parts for a while."

Jed turned towards Matt.

"So you think you're up to a night of pool playing?"

Matt smiled.

"Count me in," he said, "I haven't played in a while."

"Then we won't play for money the first round," Jed said.

"That definitely works for me," Matt said, "and my wallet."

* * *

C.J. left the City Hall building and headed towards the party. The sun had set and cast long shadows through the street that she walked from the governmental building to the diner. She ran into Joe who was still dressed in his mechanics outfit and on his way there. She walked alongside him.

"Hi Joe," she said, "So what do you think of this gig Rhonda has you doing?"

He smiled and shrugged.

"It's a job to sock away some money to expand the garage," Joe said, "and I liked working for Chippendales while I went to college."

"How long did you study there," C.J. said, "Did you get a degree?"

He shook his head.

"I stayed two years on a partial athletic scholarship until my father died and someone was needed to run the auto business," Joe said, "I did the dancing to pay for my room and board."

C.J. studied his friendly open face, one which would attract many a woman with his bright blue eyes and his smile.

"Do you mind if I ask you a sensitive question," she said.

"You mean do I mind taking my clothes off in front of women for money," he guessed.

She nodded her head. He looked at her thoughtfully.

"No, I don't mind it at all because it's my choice," he said, "My decision to do it. That's far different than in cases where the person has no choice in the manner."

C.J. looked away for a moment.

"I know what you mean," she said, "Having been in a situation to be used by men where I didn't have a choice."

He nodded.

"I'm sorry for you or anyone else being in that kind of situation," he said, "And even when it's your choice, it's not something you want to do forever. That's why I got out of it. I'm just doing this as a favor to the bride because her husband was a buddy to me."

"What do you think about his bride," she asked.

He shifted his bag over his shoulder.

"Rhonda?"

He smiled.

"She's a very nice woman," he said, "She was so sensitive to me about Sydney's plan to videotape the whole thing, knowing that we'd been in a relationship that didn't work out."

"So what did Rhonda say?"

"She said that I could have veto power on the whole video taping on the internet deal and if I decided it made me uncomfortable, that would be enough for her to cancel the deal," Joe said.

"That was nice of her," C.J. said, "So what are you going to do?"

Joe smiled.

"I'll tell her it's fine," he said, "Whatever happened between Sydney and me, that's water under the bridge."

"Yeah, I heard about your relationship from Sydney," she said, "Are you sure that she believes it's over?"

Joe sighed.

"She made that very clear to me when she broke it off with me," he said, "You see, she falls in love for a while with the men she writes about for her newspaper but after the articles come out, she falls out of love if that's even what you'd call it."

C.J. nodded.

"She interviewed Matt Houston…"

Joe sighed.

"I know for the sexiest bachelor in town or something like that," he said, "as if there's nothing but slim pickings here."

"If you're any example of what's in Silver Lode," C.J. said, "I would think not."

"Then if you're free after the party, maybe we could go out for a drink," Joe said.

C.J. smiled but shook her head.

"I'm meeting up after the party with that 'sexiest guy in town'," she said, almost apologetically.

"What does he have that I don't?"

She stopped walking and paused for a moment.

"The ability to make me fall in love with him," she said, "during a time when I thought I would never be able to do that again."

Joe nodded.

"That's something really special," he admitted, "so what is it like sharing him with the Silver Lode female population?"

She laughed.

"I don't mind, because we both know what we really want," she said, "and we're trying to get there."

They neared the diner.

"I noticed that Sydney backed off of him really quickly," Joe said.

"I think that was Houston's doing," she said, "She did mention that she really cared about you."

He frowned.

"She has a really strange way of showing it," he said, kicking the rocks on the ground.

C.J. tried to broach the subject carefully.

"Maybe someday…"

"When she grows up maybe," Joe said, "I know you're trying to be nice…"

"No I'm pushing my nose in where it doesn't belong," she said, "Well here we are. Rhonda should be waiting inside."

* * *

They entered the diner and walked into what once was the men's lodge room. Joe looked around, not recognizing it.

"What have you done to this place," he said, "If any of the Elks walked in and saw this, they'd pass out cold."

Rhonda smiled.

"I thought you'd like it," she said, then led Joe by the arm to show him around.

C.J. walked up to Chris.

"So Rhonda's really gone all out, I can see," C.J. said.

Chris rolled her eyes.

"You haven't even seen the half of it," she said, "This is going to be some party."

C.J. sighed.

"I was talking to Joe on the way here," she said, "And I don't know, but I just can't look at him the same way."

Chris looked puzzled.

"What do you mean," she said.

"We walked together and we had this conversation," C.J. said, "I got to know the personal side of him."

"So, you had a nice talk with him," Chris said.

"I got to know the man beyond the guy who fixed the rover," she said, "and the one who's going to be taking his clothes off."

Rhonda joined in on the conversation while Joe changed.

"So, isn't that how it goes, with men anyway," she said, "You get to know them a little bit then the clothes come off?"

C.J. paused.

"Well…"

Rhonda put her hands on her hips.

"Or in your case, you get to know the guy a lot longer than a little bit and then the clothes come off," she said.

C.J. rubbed her forehead.

"Wait a minute here," she said, "Are you talking about your party or my social life?"

Chris looked from C.J. to Rhonda.

"I'm trying to get ready for my party and you're telling me you've got second thoughts about watching a man take his clothes off because you spoke to him for a few minutes."

C.J. stared back.

"Well…yes…"

"Then maybe you should just stay outside while Joe's doing his thing if it bothers you so much," Rhonda said.

"Fine," C.J. said then left the diner.

* * *

She ran into Matt who was passing by the diner on his way to meet the other guys in the bar.

"What's going on," Matt said, "I thought you'd be helping Rhonda."

"I am," she said, "We just have a difference of opinion on something."

"I hope it's not too serious," he said, "She needs your support during this whole wedding process."

"I know," C.J. said, "and I mean to be there for her even during…these rituals."

Matt smiled.

"Rituals, honey they're called parties."

"I know that," she said, "and I'll get back in there and talk to her but I just needed some fresh air."

"So did I," Matt said, "The guys and I are going to be holding a strategic meeting."

"That's good," she said, "You sure you don't need any help?"

He wrapped his arms around her.

"I'm sure," he said, "and we might play some pool afterward."

She nodded.

"That sounds serious," she said.

He stroked her hair back and she closed her eyes enjoying his touch.

"But when business is done," he said, "the rest of the night belongs to you."

She smiled.

"Oh really," she said, "You sound so sure."

He kissed her on the lips, wrapping his arms tighter around her.

"Is that sure enough?"

She nodded.

"Mmmm, I'd say...," she said, "I'll see you then."

Sydney and Joseph walked by with their equipment as Matt and C.J. said goodbye.

"You two look awfully close there," Sydney noted, "Don't tell me there's a story there."

C.J. looked at Sydney.

"Not fit for print"

They walked back into the diner, not knowing that a few yards away Nick and a couple of men stood watching them from inside a pickup truck.


	38. Chapter 38

Chapter 38---The latest chapter of this fanfiction. Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoy it. Thanks for the comments.

* * *

Downtown Silver Lode bustled with a lot of activity as the sun set behind the markets. Groups of men went to the local watering hole to attend a strategizing session about defending their way of life and groups of women attended Rhonda's bachelorette party just down the street.

Sydney supposed that she should have done some reporting time at the men's event because she had been told by her editor that it was beginning to appear as if the ranchers fight against the developers might just be a large enough story to send out on the national wires. Sydney however, felt drawn towards covering the bachelorette party, because she wanted to include it for her on-line coverage of the upcoming Jonathan and Rhonda nuptials. There were just so many compelling stories about one of the town's finest young men returning back home a success in the governmental sector. The fact that he no longer worked for the federal government mattered little. He was still the local boy who made good and he had come home to be married, bringing joy to the valley but breaking a few hearts in the process. Not to mention the fact that both herself and the maid of honor herself had prior relationships with the groom, with all that history intermingling in interesting ways, who knew what could happen on the actual day of the wedding?

So it wasn't much of a decision as far as Sydney was concerned and as she and C.J. walked into the diner to attend Rhonda's party, they didn't pay much attention to what else was going on, choosing to lose themselves in the act of spending several hours with other women kicking their feet up or just kicking back.

About a dozen women had arrived at the party, all in excitement. Chris did get her wish of having spa treatments be included in the festivities as the town's local manicurist set to work on her nails, while she sat back dipping pretzels in her chocolate mint ice cream. Several women sat back and mixed various and in some cases exotic ingredients together to make facials. Rhonda nixed having one done wanting to focus on downing some shots of vodka while she and several other women played a racier version of pin the tail on the donkey. Several of them hit close to the target and so they went to take a closer look.

"Wait a minute," Donna, the town notary said, "Mine clearly was in the right place."

"Darling," Suzy, the town post mistress said, "If that's the way it's supposed to look then this poor man has some kind of disease."

Donna scoffed.

"Maybe it's just more… flexible," she said.

"Not even my Ed's can move in that many directions," Suzy said.

Rhonda broke up the argument.

"Girls," she said, "Why don't you try the nice cake that Bonnie made special for this?"

She led them both to the magnificently chocolate fudge marbled version of Michelangelo's David which served as the center piece on the table. Some women had tried to touch it earlier to get a taste and Bonnie had slapped some hands.

"Not until later," she said.

"So where's the stripper," Libby the town librarian asked.

"He's getting ready back stage," Rhonda said, "but I promise you, he will definitely be worth the wait."

"I hope it's not some local yokel," she said, "Hopefully, he's at least from as far away as Denver."

Rhonda looked at C.J. who just shrugged her shoulders.

"Your party seems to be going well," C.J. admitted as they walked to the refreshment table.

"I'm going to refresh my drink and sit down," Rhonda said, "All this planning's kind of gotten to me."

They each poured themselves a scotch and sat in the corner, with Bonnie who had been handing out some exotic chocolates that she had ordered to the women, who found them delicious.

"There's something in there that's supposed to you know…make you a bit randy," Bonnie confided.

Rhonda's eyes widened.

"Are you sure that it's going to be safe to send these women home when the party's over?"

Bonnie laughed.

"There's a warning on the label," she said, "to imbibe carefully."

"I'm thinking of their poor husbands and boyfriends," Rhonda said.

* * *

Matt and Jed spent an hour meeting with the other ranchers to set up new shifts to guard the Wyatt and Flynn properties from further trespassing on them.

"How are the mustangs been doing," Jed asked.

"They've been coming around in their usual groups," one rancher said, sipping his beer, "We've been keeping a closer eye on them to make sure they're not bothered."

Jed nodded.

"That's great," he said, "We're going to have to keep doing that until we can get some feds down here to help enforce that injunction."

Another rancher stood up.

"When that's going to happen," he said, "Why aren't they down here?"

"That's a good question Shane," Jed said, "In fact, Matt here and I have been working very hard trying to hold the feds accountable."

"But they seem more intent on leaving you ranchers out in the cold," Matt finished.

"Maybe not for long," a man said as he entered the bar.

The other ranchers turned around at the sound of the familiar voice.

Jonathan stood at the doorway and everyone got up to welcome him back home.

* * *

Chris finished up the marble ice cream and pretzel mix that she had concocted. Other women had walked by and looked at her curiously but a couple brave souls had tried some and declared it if not exactly delicious, at least palatable.

Chris watched them leave, shaking her head.

"How could they pass up such a tasty treat," she asked.

C.J. laughed.

"Maybe it's more of an acquired taste," she said, diplomatically.

Chris waved a pretzel at her friend.

"Oh just you wait when it's _your_ turn and you start eating unbelievably bizarre things," she said, "And I bet they'll be even stranger than mine."

Rhonda overheard her and sat down suddenly, covering her forehead.

"Chris dear, must we bring up _that_ "p" word at my party," she said, waving her hand near her face.

C.J. looked at her friend.

"Don't tell me…"

Rhonda shook her head vigorously.

"No I'm not," she said, "but well, I didn't tell you everything there was to say about this marriage proposal thing."

That piqued C.J. and Chris' curiosity.

"Do tell us," Chris said.

Rhonda hesitated.

"Well, when we were biking through Kentucky, we got a little…frisky and it broke."

Chris and C.J. just looked at her, confused.

"It broke, you know," she said, "You mean I'm the only one who practices safer sex?"

"Oh, I see," Chris said, nodding, "so what did you do?"

Rhonda played with her hands.

"Well, we had a long discussion about what would happen if I did get pregnant," she said, "and I think that by the time we got that done, that's when we both knew that we really did want to stick it out together."

Chris nodded.

"That's kind of romantic actually," she said, "in its own way."

Rhonda harrumphed.

"When did I ever say I was a traditional Hallmark kind of girl?"

C.J. smiled.

"That's one way to test your commitment between each other," she said, "and it turned out to be a positive thing, I see."

Rhonda nodded.

"We really do love each other underneath it all," she said, "Imagine that."

"Jonathan's a great guy," C.J. said, "Take good care of him."

"Oh don't worry about that," Rhonda said, "What would you have done in our shoes, you and your boyfriend?"

"I can't even imagine being in that kind of situation," C.J. said, "I mean I want children but I've got a lot to do first and I know that things are different now, but I'd like to be married."

Chris pressed her.

"So what would you do," she said.

C.J. gave it some thought, then smiled.

"I'd have the baby of course," she said, "after all, I love the father and I think some small part of me always wanted to have a bit of him running in my children's veins."

"Now that's romantic," Rhonda said, "but what about marriage?"

Chris laughed.

"If anything, Matt would want to run not walk to the altar," she said, "I think he's very traditional that way."

"How would you feel about that C.J.," Rhonda asked.

C.J. shook her head, not wanting to go down this road any further. She wanted to enjoy her relationship which still felt like it was in its embryonic stage rather than think too far ahead.

"I thought we were talking about your real wedding," she said, "not my hypothetical one."

* * *

"So Jonathan, how do you feel about getting married," Matt asked him after buying him his first drink, which was a Vodka on the rocks.

"I feel ready," he said, "as ready as I'll ever be. There will never be a dull moment. That's for sure," he said, shaking his head.

"Yeah, your future bride is hosting her party just on down the street," Matt said.

Jonathan nodded.

"She really loves to have fun and kick up her heels," he said, "and it's good for her to see her friends again."

"So how's the job market?"

Jonathan shrugged.

"I'm looking at a couple different offers," he said, "including a couple with the federal government."

Matt raised his brows.

"I never thought I'd hear you say that you'd consider going back."

Jonathan sipped his Vodka and swallowed it slowly.

"I never thought I would either," he said, "but I guess that I'd been bitten harder than I thought."

"You could always take your talents into the private sector," Matt said.

Jonathan laughed.

"You hiring?"

Matt's face grew serious.

"If you were interested, I'd hire you on," he said, "I'm thinking of starting a new venture in Houston when we're done here."

Jonathan looked surprised.

"What about your agency out in L.A.?"

Matt took a long sip from his beer.

"I was thinking of handing it off to my partners and maintaining a controlling interest," he said, "but my life's in Texas now."

Jonathan nodded.

"Because that's where C.J. is now?"

Matt's smile was his only answer.

* * *

Nick and his men stood outside the diner, near where they had parked their vehicles.

"It's just a bunch of the women folk having a party," one of his men said, "One of those ladies-only affairs."

Nick nodded.

"Where the men," he asked.

"They're in the bar having some type of meeting," the man said.

Nick walked back to his truck.

"Well, I've got something to

"Wait, does Kilroy know what you're doing?"

Nick turned to face his men.

"He gave me explicit orders to do whatever I needed to do to stop these people from interfering with our project," he said, "He didn't give me any restrictions for my methods."

"What are you planning to do," the man asked.

Nick smiled.

"You'll see."

* * *

Rhonda looked at the group of women who were growing restless. Chris walked up to her.

"Don't you think It's time to bring Joe on out to do his thing?"

Sydney walked up to Rhonda.

"I've got some great footage of this party," she said, "How's Joe doing?"

"I'm going off to find him," Rhonda said, "He's backstage somewhere right."

Sydney shrugged.

"Last I saw he was back there getting ready."

"I'll go find him," Rhonda said.

C.J. started to walk to get some more refreshments when she felt her phone vibrate. She picked it up and heard a voice on the other end.

"You have approximately five minutes to evacuate from that building," the unknown voice said.

C.J. stared at her phone in shock.

"What are you talking about," she said, "Who is this?"

The speaker ignored her questions.

"There's a device that's set to detonate in less than five minutes," the voice said, "You need to get out of there."

The person hung up the phone. C.J. looked around the room at all the women, talking amongst themselves and getting more refreshments from Bonnie's table. She looked towards every closet, every cupboard, drawer, every nook and cranny where a bomb could be hidden.

"Hey everyone," C.J. yelled, waving her arms, "I need your attention."

Everyone stopped what they were doing and looked up at her puzzled.

"What is it C.J.," Rhonda said.

"I just got a phone call that says there's a bomb inside here and we have several minutes to get out of here," she said.

"You have got to be kidding me," Rhonda said.

C.J. shook her head.

"I don't think this is a joke," she said, "I think we need to leave."

Everyone started running out of the diner in different directions, trying to find the way out. Rhonda and C.J. left to where Joe was waiting back stage dressed in his outfit.

"Is it time for me to go on stage," he asked.

Rhonda shook her head and grabbed his arm.

"No it's time to get out of here," she said, "C.J. just got a warning that the place is going up in less than five minutes."

His eyes widened and he grabbed some things and followed them out. While running through the banquet room, they noticed that the refreshment table including the Michelangelo's David cake had been knocked to the floor.

"Why the hell would anyone warn us," Rhonda asked as she and C.J. left the building after making sure it was empty.

"I don't know," C.J. said, "Whoever's responsible obviously didn't attend to kill anyone."

Rhonda frowned.

"Maybe just to break up my party."

Sydney wandered around followed by her cameramen who stuck his video camera in people's faces to get their reaction to the bomb threat. They all stood around waiting for the place to go up.

* * *

Matt sat up and listened. Jonathan and Jed looked at him.

"What is it," Jed asked.

"I'm hearing a lot of commotion outside," he said, "I wonder what that's all about."

They went to the doorway to look out towards the street.

"It's the women who went to Rhonda's party," Jed said, incredulously.

* * *

C.J. waited for the explosion to happen as the clock ticked down but after it ticked down past five minutes, only silence and an empty building met them. She sighed wondering if they'd been duped by some mysterious party when suddenly, a thunderous boom struck the air and shook the ground. C.J. looked up and saw that the bar where the ranchers had held their meeting had been badly damaged and was burning. She and some of the other women went running towards the inferno.


	39. Chapter 39

Chapter 39--the latest installment in this story. I hope you like it, thanks for reading and for the feedback!

* * *

When the explosive went off, at first there was confusion and silence in the street. All the women who had fled the diner had stood in the street and waited to see what would happen next. Only the stillness of the night air met them. not the explosion they had expected. They had talked nervously among themselves about everything and nothing, waiting to see if the threat against them had been real or just a vicious prank.

Then just as they were beginning to exhale and think that it had been just an empty threat, the earth rumbled beneath their feet even before the flames of an explosion inside the nearby bar had reached their line of vision.

All the women's eyes soon turned towards the burning building in front of them, their minds on the men trapped inside the inferno. At first no one said a word until finally someone broke the silence.

"Oh my God," Rhonda said, "They planted the bomb in the bar."

C.J. and Rhonda ran over to the building, right into clouds of thick black smoke which spewed outside of the structure. Some of the ranchers inside either crawled or stumbled out of the doorway. C.J. kept her eyes peeled for Matt, but knew she wouldn't see him among the first stragglers coming out. More than likely, he remained inside the building trying to help injured people out before it collapsed. Sydney and her photographer ran over to the building to cover the fire for their newspaper.

Bonnie came running up behind C.J. Both women struggled to see through the smoke which caused their eyes to tear.

"Have you seen Jed," she asked.

C.J. shook her head.

"He's probably in there with Houston trying to help people," she said, "I hope they both make it out before the building collapses."

Both of the women inched closer to the building but while more men staggered out, coughing and with their arms around each other, neither Matt nor Jed came out with them.

Sirens finally filled the air as the voluntary fire fighters drove to the scene with their equipment. As soon as their trucks stopped, the team of firefighters jumped out and started dragging their hoses to the hydrants.

"What happened," one of them said, "The dispatcher said it was an explosion?"

C.J. nodded.

"I got a phone call some minutes earlier to evacuate the diner because an explosive had been planted there," she said.

"We'd better call Sheriff Daniels," one fireman said.

"If anyone can find him," said another, who rushed by pulling a hose. Joe, who only a few minutes before had been just about to strip down at a bachelorette party also worked in the volunteer firefighter department and after throwing on some clothes over his racy outfit, went to help the others.

"How many people still in there," a fireman asked Bonnie.

"At least a half dozen I'm guessing," she said, "Could be more."

She turned around to ask C.J. if she knew but saw the younger woman no longer stood there.

* * *

C.J. wrapped a shirt around her face, after running some water over it and headed towards the bar. She gingerly pushed aside a smoldering piece of timber by the doorway, and stepped inside the bar. A massive wave of heat struck her face, turning it red and her eyes teared heavily as she tried to see through the smoke.

"Houston," she called, coughing each time she said his name.

She heard no response. Looking closer, she saw a shape and figured out that it was Jed.

"C.J. what are you doing in here," Jed asked.

"Where's Houston," she said, "I didn't see him come out."

Jed pointed towards the corner of the bar near the pool table, which had toppled.

"He and Reed are helping a man trapped beneath that table," he said, "I've got two men over here who were stuck in the bathroom but they made it out the window."

C.J. walked past him to where Matt stood, or rather leaned over, trying to breathe but coughing instead.

"Houston, you can't stay in here much longer," she said.

He looked up, his face covered with ash and saw C.J. standing there.

"What the hell are you doing here," he said, "You're supposed to be at the diner."

"And have a party while you men burn to death over here," she said, "Yeah right, besides we were all outside anyway."

Matt looked at her puzzled but C.J. just gestured to say she'd explain later as soon as all of them were safely outside.

"I'll help hold up this end of the table," she said, "and maybe you and Reed can slide him out nice and easily."

Both men nodded and lifted up the table again. C.J.'s muscles strained as she struggled to use her core mass to keep the table end up while Matt and Reed slid the man, who appeared to have a broken leg out from where he had been trapped.

The smoke grew thicker as Matt and Reed tried to drag the man out of the bar between them, while C.J. led the way.

"Hurry," she said, "You've got a lot of smoke in your lungs."

They all three were hit by a blast of fresh air near the entrance of the bar and Matt and Reed in response dropped the man gently on the ground in front of several firefighters who tended to him. C.J. looked at Matt and saw that he was just about to pass out from smoke inhalation and called a firefighter over to give him oxygen. His eyes fluttered and closed.

"What's going on," she demanded.

"He's got smoke in his lungs miss," a paramedic said, "And his respiratory passages are starting to swell. We've got to get him on oxygen and to the hospital."

She nodded, her eyes dripping tears tainted with soot.

"I'll get my things," she said.

The other paramedic just looked at her.

"I'm going with him," she said, "And no one had better stand in my way."

Not wanting an argument, he simply nodded and when they loaded up Matt in the ambulance, she climbed right in beside him and held his hand.

Bonnie stuck her head in.

"How's he doing," she asked.

"They don't know yet," C.J. said, "How's Jed?"

"He's fine," she said, "We'll head down to the hospital right behind you."

C.J. nodded as they closed the ambulance doors and she sat next to Matt as they worked on him, keeping her fingers wrapped around his. Every once in a while, she felt him squeeze back to reassure her that he was still there.

* * *

Later, she and Bonnie sat in the lobby at the hospital with Rhonda who was waiting while her fiancé' arm was stitched up after being cut up by broken glass.

"It could have been worse," Rhonda said, "It missed his major artery by a couple millimeters."

Bonnie sighed in relief.

"Thank goodness," she said, "Jed's just getting some oxygen as a precautionary measure."

Rhonda patted C.J.'s arm.

"Hey, Matt's going to be just fine," she said, "and he saved a couple lives there."

C.J. nodded, holding onto her jacket which smelled like charcoal. Chris and Butterfly had gone to the cafeteria to bring them back some drinks. They returned with Thea in the rear carrying some sandwiches.

"They had these left over at the cafeteria," she said, "They're not bad, filling anyway. We could be here for a while."

Butterfly looked somber.

"I hope Matt's going to be okay," she said, "Carter said that Reed didn't get injured at all but they're checking him out just to be sure"

Chris put her arm around the teenager.

"I'm sure Matt will come through this just fine," she said, "He's been through scrapes like this on the job more times than I can count."

C.J. just sat there wrapped up in her own thoughts. She knew Chris was right about Matt's history of narrowly escaping death on several occasions and suffering serious injuries including bullet wounds. She had always worried about each one but her attitude back then had been to help patch him up, get him back on his horse and send him out again, with her heart in her throat covered by a smile.

But now, this time she felt differently. This time the reality of him being injured had cut her to the core and she had felt fear deep inside her that something terrible had happened to take him away from her. She knew if she lost him, she'd lose a part of herself, a part of her she had just began to know all over again.

"He's going to be just fine," Rhonda said, sitting next to C.J.

"Oh I know that," C.J. said, trying to smile, "I just wish they'd give us an update. It's been several hours."

"They're busy working on him, that's all," Rhonda said, "and he's probably giving them a hard time while they're at it."

C.J. did smile at that. She knew how much Matt hated hospitals and getting medical attention. He always tried to sneak out of the back door when the doctors and nurses weren't looking, more than once while still wearing his hospital gown flashing his backside to passing nurses. Still, she grew impatient waiting for the doctors to come back with any news on his condition.

Thea and Bonnie sat next to her. C.J. ran her hand through her hair, trying to keep the tears from coming.

"I'm sorry," she said, "I'm usually not like this. It's just that…"

Thea rubbed the younger woman's shoulder.

"You love him," she said, "No explanation is needed and Matt's a strong man. He'll pull through this just fine."

"I hope so," she said, "I'm really glad Jonathan's injuries weren't any worse."

"Yeah a hell of a homecoming isn't it," Thea said, shaking her head, "What happened in that bar wasn't an accident, was it?"

C.J. shook her head.

"That's what I told the firefighters and one of them was going to call Sheriff Daniels," she said.

Thea sighed.

"A lot of good that's going to do," she said, "considering who probably is responsible for it."

C.J. looked at her hands.

"I know who's to blame," she said, "and one way or another, they're not going to get away with it."

"Daniels has interests to protect," Bonnie said, "and he's going to call it accidental without even taking one damn look at it."

Jed walked over to join them.

"I just got off the phone with the FBI," he said, "They're sending an arson investigator and they're going to fly someone in from the ATF."

Bonnie grumbled.

"It's about time," she said, "People here have been threatened and terrorized for weeks."

A doctor finally walked up to them. C.J. jumped out of her chair to meet him.

"How is he," she asked.

The doctor looked at them a moment.

"He's going to be fine," he said, "Minor smoke damage and a sprained wrist, but we're keeping him a day, maybe two to make sure."

C.J. sighed in relief, her legs growing weak as it hit her that he was going to recover.

"May I see him," she said.

The doctor nodded.

"Just a few minutes," he said, "He's still on oxygen but he's conscious."

* * *

Nick paced outside by his truck after he and his men had driven away from the inferno. He had just gotten a call from Kilroy.

"Don't tell me how to do the job that you gave me to do," Nick said, "You told me to use any means necessary to stop these people."

"I didn't know you would go as far as committing domestic terrorism," Kilroy said, "You just tried to blow up a building filled with people."

"They were in our way," he said, "preventing us from making a ton of money."

"There were still other ways to deal with them besides using explosives," Kilroy said, "and of course there's going to be an investigation."

"We've got that under control," he said, "We'll just the squeeze on Daniels."

"But what if outside agencies come in to take a look," Kilroy said, "They can't be squeezed and I don't think they're going to be bought off if it's true and there was an ex-fed in that bar when it blew."

"You mean Jonathan," Nick said, "I wouldn't worry about him. Besides how were we to know that he would show up like that in town?"

"You knew it was a definite probability, given that he was getting married," Kilroy said, "If any of this traces back to me, it's going to be your head."

Nick's temper flared.

"Now hold on, I am not going to be the one holding the bag if this whole operation falls apart," he said, "There's still time to salvage it."

"How," Kilroy said, "and I'm just throwing that out there before the authorities come banging on my door with an arrest warrant."

"We'll think of something," Nick said, his mind working.

"You'd better be thinking awfully quick," he said, "because if I'm going down for this, I'm not going down alone."

* * *

C.J. walked into the hospital room and saw Matt lying in bed. She walked over to sit in the chair next to him and saw his eyes flutter.

"You're about the best looking thing I've seen since I've been here," he said, his voice hoarse.

She smiled and took his hand in hers, rubbing it in both of her own.

"You've seen better days," she said, "but I don't care right now."

"What were you doing in the bar," he asked.

"Looking for you," she said, "I knew you'd stay in there until you could get everyone else out but that could have gotten you killed."

"C.J…"

"No, you have a couple minutes left alive in there at best before you passed out or that place came crashing down," she said, "I'm sorry, you can play hero if you want but you aren't allowed to die."

He reached up with his free hand to stroke her cheek which was damp.

"I'm not going to die," he said, "I've got too much to live for so you don't need to worry about that."

"But I do," she said, "and now more than I ever did…or maybe I can just express it more openly now, I don't know."

"Yes you do," he said, "Because we know where we stand with each other, what we mean to each other and we can live the life we both want."

"How can you be so sure?"

He smiled at her.

"I know, because I feel the same way too."

She moved closer to him and he reached for her. She went into his arms careful not to dislodge any hospital equipment.

"I love you," she said, resting her head against his chest, listening to his steady heartbeat.

"I love you," he said, whispering it into her hair.

* * *

They argued as they left the college cafeteria after a study session. Matt's grades had improved since he had begun being tutored by C.J. in some of his classes. His prowess on the football field had earned him write-ups in major sports publications and had caught the eye of more than a couple of pro scouts. Life looked awfully good and Matt felt that hooking up with a new girlfriend only added to that. His best friend walking alongside didn't share that point of view.

"I think she's going to break your heart," C.J. said, slinging her book bag over her shoulder.

Matt had started going out with one of the cheerleaders in the squad, a perky red head with a personality to match and had become quite smitten. But C.J. noticed that about him. He quickly became infatuated with women he met, put a lot of time and energy into his relationships with women but they never lasted very long. He had an intensity about him that he brought into every element of his life. In some ways, it served him well but in relationships, maybe not as much.

"How can you say that," he said, "Lucy's crazy about me. We've been going out three months."

"So you've slept with her."

Matt's face flushed as it always did when C.J. made comments like that.

"Well, I…reserve the right to not answer that question."

C.J. sighed.

"Matt, you're the third football player she's chased after this season and she goes after what she wants," she said, "And she's left a trail of devastated men behind her."

Matt stopped walking and looked at her puzzled.

"Devastated," he said, "They all seem fine to me."

"Now they are," she said, "but they've had some time to get over being dumped."

Matt paused and the expression on his face became serious.

"C.J., do you think there's something wrong with me that would make you think I couldn't keep a woman like Lucy happy?"

She looked up at him, pausing until she found just the right words to explain what she really meant except now thinking about it, she wasn't sure what that she really meant. Still, she had to say something.

"C.J….", Matt continued, his brows raised.

She took a stab at it.

"Houston, there's nothing wrong with you at all. You're a wonderful guy, great looking, the best friend a girl could ever have…"

"And?"

"But you're sensitive too," she said, "You feel your emotions very strongly and you wear your heart on your sleeve. You live hard and you play hard"

_And you fall in love hard_, she almost added but didn't.

"What's wrong with that," he said, "It's who I am."

"I know that," she said, "It's what makes you such a great guy. It's just that…Lucy isn't going to make you happy," she said.

"She is making me happy," he protested, and then he narrowed his eyes at her, "What is this really all about?"

"It's about you being happy," she said, dodging his question, "and I don't want you to get hurt."

"If I get hurt, I get hurt C.J.," he said, "That's part of what relationships are about. You know that."

She nodded. She definitely understood that part of it.

"What happened to that fellow that you were going out with last month," he asked.

"He transferred to the other side of the country to take a geology fellowship," she said.

"Oh," he said, "I'm sorry, why didn't you tell me?"

She shrugged.

"It just didn't work out," she said, "I'm still trying to figure out what I'm looking for in a guy. At least you know what you want in your relationships and you get it."

He looked at her a moment.

"Not all the time," he said, quietly.

Suddenly her eyes didn't meet his, remembering.

"Just be careful," she said, before kissing him on the cheek and walking away.

* * *

She woke up with a start, her head still resting against Matt's chest. He lay asleep, his arm wrapped around her. She looked at her watch and saw that it was nearly morning. Looking around at the darkened room, she realized that she had a lot of work to do. She knew who was responsible for what could have been a very tragic event the previous night. Thinking back to everything that had happened to her since she had first arrived in Silver Lode to take the case, she realized that a line in her had been crossed and she had to respond in her own way. It was one thing to come after her but to go after Houston, that she couldn't allow.

She carefully extricated herself from the embrace of the man she had loved and been in love with most of her life and walked out of the hospital room.


	40. Chapter 40

Chapter 40--this is the next chapter of this story. Thanks for reading and I hope you like it. Thanks for the comments also.

* * *

Matt sat up in his hospital bed, stifling from the night spent under observation at the hospital. He hated spending time in hospitals and was already restless to check out of this one, in his hospital gown if need be. His throat still felt very sore and his muscles felt sore and weakened by his ordeal but not enough to stop him from getting back to work. But in order to do that, he had to first locate his clothes. He climbed out of his bed and walked towards the closet where he hoped he would find them.

C.J. walked into the room.

"And where do you think you're going," she said, "Get back into that bed right now."

He stared at her, his hand still on the closet door but she wasn't bluffing. She put her hands on her hips.

"I mean it," she said, "The doctor said you had to take it easy for a couple of days."

"I'm ready to go home now," he said, standing firm.

She smiled.

"You look really sumptuous in that hospital gown," she said, "You're going to have all the nurses in here in a minute to make sure you don't leave."

"I'm still leaving," he said, opening the closet and grabbing his clothes.

C.J. reached for the call button.

"With one press of this little button here, they'll all come running in like the Calvary," she said.

He gave her that look.

"Don't you dare," he said, reaching for her.

"I will do it, if you don't get back into that bed right now," she said, not surrendering the button.

They stared at each other for a long moment, waiting for the other to back down first. Finally, Matt stepped backward.

"You drive a hard bargain Ms Parsons," he said.

"And you need to get better so that we can take you home and I can take care of you there," she said.

"Okay, okay," he said putting his clothes on the chair, "I'll get back in that bed on one condition."

"Yeah and what's that," she asked.

"If you'll join me."

* * *

Kilroy paced the conference room where Nick and the other guys sat there waiting.

"I can't believe that you really set an explosive off that could have killed a bunch of ranchers," he said, "How could you be so careless?"

Nick looked pretty pleased with himself. He couldn't understand why Kilroy was so upset with him.

"I even phoned in a bogus threat to the bachelorette party so that they could come out and watch their men get blown to bits right in front of them," Nick said.

"Except no one was killed," Kilroy said, "We were very lucky there. At least we won't be indicted for murder."

"If Daniels does his job right," Nick said, "We won't be indicted for anything."

"But what if he doesn't," Kilroy said, "He's getting a lot of pressure to go the straight and narrow since that rancher declared his candidacy for sheriff."

Nick scoffed.

"How good at the straight and narrow is he going to be," he said, "He hasn't got the practice."

"This whole thing is a disaster, Nick," Kilroy said, pacing the room, "What were you thinking?"

"You told me to put them out of commission and that's what I tried to do," Nick said.

"Out of commission, yes," Kilroy said, "but you're talking about mass murder here, murder that was barely avoided."

"I did what we have to do to protect our investment," Nick said, "If these ranchers knew why we really wanted the land."

"They'll never know," Kilroy said, "even the politicians in our pockets don't know that."

"Well I think that female lawyer and her investigator are beginning to figure it out," Nick said, "and then there's going to be more trouble."

"Then maybe you'd better focus your energies on stopping those two from using that information against us," Kilroy said, "rather than trying to blow up the town and bring Homeland Security down here to investigate."

Kilroy's phone rang and he picked it up.

"Who is it," Nick asked.

"Damn, it's Mayor Parker," Kilroy said, before leaving the room to take the call.

* * *

Matt wrapped his arms around C.J. who lay beside him on the hospital bed.

"Okay, you got me here," she said smiling at him, "Now what?"

"Most of it will have to wait until we get home," he said, trailing a finger along her arm, "but there are some things we could do."

She nodded, her eyes not leaving his.

"I see," she said, "Are you sure you're up to this? I mean, you just barely crawled out of a burning building last night."

He raised his brow.

"I've got amazing recuperative powers."

They heard a knock on the door and Rhonda barged right in.

"Why am I not surprised to find you two together in a compromising position?"

Both C.J. and Matt looked at each other, smiling.

Rhonda just smiled at them.

"Don't worry about it," she said, "Your secret's safe with me. I already know she didn't come home last night. "

"She was with me," Matt said, "I'll be her alibi."

"How's Jonathan," C.J. asked.

"His arm's as sore as the dickens but he'll get over it," she said, "He's getting fitted for his groom's suit today."

"Oh wow," C.J. said, "the wedding's getting close. You must be excited."

"About the wedding yes," Rhonda said, sitting on the edge of the bed, "but about what happened last night..."

Matt saw a look that passed between the two women.

"How'd the party go until our meeting came to an explosive ending?"

C.J. shrugged.

"It went fine," she said, "The women who came had a lot of fun. The food was great."

"What did you think," Matt said, "You seemed to be a reluctant chaperon for Rhonda here."

"It was pretty fun actually," she said, "We talked mostly about…the things women sit around and talk about."

"Oh," Matt said, "I think I'll leave that one alone."

"It was all harmless Houston," she said, "Nothing to worry about."

"What were you doing when the explosion occurred," Matt asked.

C.J. bit her lip and Rhonda looked the other way.

"There's something you need to tell me," he asked.

The two women looked at each other and then Rhonda sighed.

"He's going to find out eventually."

"What exactly happened here," Matt said, "What is it that you're not telling me?"

C.J. sighed.

"We were all standing outside the diner when the explosive went off," she said, "I got a phone call warning us that we had five minutes to get out of there so we did."

"Right before the stripper part," Rhonda added.

"So someone called and threatened you," Matt said.

C.J. nodded.

"Then they hit the bar where all you were inside," she said, "I wish I had figured out that you were the target and not us."

"How could you have done that," Matt said, "You were the ones who were told about an explosive device in your building. You did what you had to do which was get out of there."

"I don't know why this person called me," she said, "unless they wanted us all to be out on the street so we could watch what happened to you guys."

"That's really cruel," Rhonda said, "It would take a real messed up person to do something like that."

"And there's a guy like that running around out there," Matt said, "who's done enough damage so far and nearly gotten people killed."

"Look I don't know who was on the phone," C.J. said, "and maybe we should wait to see what the arson investigators say before we make any accusations."

"It wasn't a natural gas explosion or anything like that," Matt said, "not if you got the phone call just beforehand."

C.J. pulled away from him, sitting at the edge of the bed.

"We should wait…"

"Why?"

"Because I can already feel your muscles tensing which tells me that you're already planning to get out of this hospital bed and go after these guys," she said.

Matt couldn't argue with her assessment not when what she said had just been running through his head.

"C.J., I'm not going to let these men get away with hurting any more people," he said.

"They're not going to get away with it," she said, "but you have to be healthy to go after these men and you're not. You've just been in an explosion."

"I know that," he said, gritting his teeth, "and I walked away from it."

"Barely," she added, "You were lucky."

"C.J., I'm going to be fine," he said, "but staying in this hospital bed while this maniac is running around loose isn't going to help with my recovery."

"There's not much to do," she said, "Jonathan's going to get some feds down here to process the crime scene. Hopefully before Sheriff Daniels can muck it up."

"And what are you going to do if they come after you while I'm in here," he said.

She tossed up her head.

"Houston, I can take care of myself."

"You shouldn't have to C.J.," he said, "You're pissing them off a lot more than the ranchers. How do we know that they're not going to come back around and get you?"

She sighed.

"We don't know," she said, "At least what we do know is that the feds are starting to see how serious this situation has become and are getting involved. Hopefully, they'll send in some National Guard or federal police to take some shifts guarding those disputed properties."

"That would be nice," Matt agreed, "But if that Nick character has you in his sights, what am I going to be able to do about it in here?"

She stood up and looked down at him.

"You aren't going to be able to do anything until your lungs get better which will be in about a day or two," she said, "We can handle ourselves until then."

"C.J…."

"Houston, we really will handle it," she said, "You need to get better."

Rhonda looked between the two of them.

"You definitely have to get better for my wedding," she said, "Jonathan and I want you to be one of the groomsman."

Matt looked up surprised.

"I'll definitely be up to doing that," he said.

"Houston, I got to go," C.J. said, "I've got some things to handle. I'll be back as soon as I can."

She kissed him goodbye and left the hospital room. Rhonda shook her head after she left.

"What was that about," she asked, "That girl is definitely up to something."

Matt agreed, his face troubled.

"That's what I'm afraid of."

* * *

C.J. left the hospital and ran smack into Sydney, who had just finished updating her online series of articles on Rhonda and Jonathan's road to the alter with a side bar on the explosion which had consumed most of Silver Lode's main watering hole. She was sure it wouldn't be long until the town's men held the equivalent of a barn raising to get the bar put together and back in action again.

"Where are you going," Sydney asked.

C.J. didn't stop.

"I'm looking for Sheriff Daniels."

Sydney shrugged as she pulled out her planner.

"I think I just saw him go into his office," she said, "He should still be there. Anything interesting going to happen?"

"Only if he ignores me," C.J. said, still heading to the office.

Sydney kept up with her stride.

"So this is about the explosion last night, right?"

"I'm impressed how quickly you picked that up."

Sydney stopped and folded her arms.

"Look, I know you clearly don't think very much of my journalistic skills," she said.

"It's not that," C.J. said, "It's just that I haven't seen them. You're obviously very smart and skilled at your work but you don't have the right focus."

Sydney grimaced.

"Listen are you going to lecture me about what kind of stories you think I should be writing again?"

Sydney looked petulant and C.J. really couldn't blame her. She was coming on a bit strong with the criticism but Sydney's lack of attention to the serious events taking place in Silver Lode really grated on her.

"No, I think I'm done with that," C.J. said, "If you were really interested in this story, you would have given it the coverage it deserved."

Sydney turned to face her.

"Look, I got to sell papers and face it, the story on Matt Houston, multimillion dollar bachelor extraordinaire sold more copies than anything about these development deals."

"That doesn't mean that what's going on in the valley with those ranchers is any less important," C.J. said, "and now that someone's out there blowing up buildings with people inside of them…"

"Are you sure that wasn't a natural gas explosion," Sydney said, as they approached the sheriff's station.

C.J. stopped and looked in her in the eye.

"We both know about the threatening phone call that told us to leave the diner," she said.

"We know what you told us about the phone call," Sydney said, looking at her nails.

C.J. sighed.

"Can I ask you a question," she said, "Do you by any chance work for Kilroy?"

Sydney stopped, her mouth hanging open.

"How could you say such a thing?"

"Because you always seem to be treating what they say as the truth," C.J. said, "and everything's else is either a lie or subject to debate."

Sydney folded her arms.

"What about that witness I introduced to you," she said, "Wasn't that helpful to you?"

C.J. nodded.

"Yes it was," she said, and that had been true although she and Matt had other things on their mind during that meeting.

"So why do you treat me like I'm the enemy?"

C.J. looked at Sydney and decided she didn't want to get into it with the reporter.

"Look I'm sorry if that's the way it seemed," she said, "It's just that I have a job to do while I'm here and I'm going to do it."

Sydney nodded.

"I can respect that," she said, "So you're going to shake down Daniels about his investigation into last night's fire?"

"I'm going to tell him that it's not going to be left up to him this time," C.J. said, "and enjoy every minute of it."

"He's not going to like that," Sydney said as they reached the entrance.

"He probably won't," C.J. said, "but after last night, I don't care what he thinks or says. It's what he does and it had better be an investigation."

They both stepped inside the door and asked the woman at the front desk to see Daniels. The woman nodded and they followed her into his office.

Daniels sat at his desk, looking through a pile of files on his desk. When he looked and saw both women, his face fell.

"If I had known it was you…"

"You wouldn't have let us come back here," C.J. finished, "Well don't worry, this will be a very short conversation and then we'll be on our way."

"If you're here to ask about the investigation into the fire last night…"

"It was an explosion that was deliberately set that almost killed everyone inside that building," C.J. said.

"So you say Ms Parsons," Daniels said, waving his arm, "You can deal with speculation, Sydney here can deal with sensationalism, but I have to deal with cold hard evidence and facts."

"And when are you going to start searching for those facts," C.J. said, "To begin with, I received a phone call telling the people at a party held in the diner…"

"Ah yes, the bachelorette party," he said.

C.J. ignored the tone in his voice.

"The caller told me that we had five minutes to get out of that building before it would explode," she said.

Daniels nodded.

"Another one of your threatening calls?"

"Either that or a warning," C.J. said.

"Why would the caller warn you of an explosion that never came and then blow up another building filled with people without giving them the same consideration?"

C.J. listened to the skepticism in his voice.

"I don't know," she said, "Maybe they wanted us to leave the party so we would be able to watch the bar explode. Most of us had loved ones inside there."

"Oh so it's some sort of psychological trick," Daniels said, writing it down on a note pad.

"The women were terrified when they saw the bar explode," Sydney pointed out, "Many of them tried to run in the building looking for them. C.J. was one of them."

"I didn't even think about what I did," she said, "Maybe that's what the caller was counting on. That not only would we feel terrified but that we would put ourselves in danger."

"And what kind of individuals would do something like this," Daniels said, folding his arm.

C.J. looked straight at him.

"I think we both know the answer to that."

Daniels looked uneasy.

"I will not listen to you defame several fine gentlemen," he said.

"Then you won't have to," C.J. said, "because I'm leaving."

"The sooner you do that, the sooner I can continue that investigation," Daniels said.

She turned to take a last look at him.

"Good, so when the federal investigators drop by later today, you'll have most of your work product available for them to review by then."

Daniels face froze as the two women left the room. Then he reached for his phone.

C.J. and Sydney left the building.

"He sure wasn't happy to see us, "Sydney noted.

"Par for the course actually," C.J. said as she neared her rover.

"Where you heading off to," Sydney said.

"Back to the ranch to get some work done so I can visit Houston tonight."

"How's he been doing," Sydney said, "You know I was thinking of doing a follow up story since he proved to be a real hero last night."

C.J. stopped.

"You know, so was Joe," she said, "I had no idea he was a volunteer fire fighter until I saw him saving two men."

Sydney's smile dimmed.

"Yeah, he's a man of all trades," she said, "in more ways than one."

C.J. suppressed a smile, sensing the journalist was still soft on the guy.

Butterfly came running up to her.

"Are you heading back to the ranch," she asked.

C.J. nodded.

"Need a ride?"

"Yeah I do," she said, "I want to meet Carter for some fishing. Chris said it was okay."

"Okay, hop on in," C.J. said.

"Can I join you," Sydney said, "I want to bring some extra copies of a newspaper to Thea on her son at the ranch."

C.J. looked at Sydney and then shrugged.

"What about your own car?"

"It's in the shop," Sydney said, "One of the fire trucks accidentally brushed it."

C.J. nodded.

"Okay, I'll give you a ride out there."

They all got into C.J.'s rover and she took off towards the ranch. The three of them rode in silence, their thoughts occupying their attention. None of them were aware of the black truck that tailed them.

Suddenly, C.J.'s phone rang. She picked it up.

"Hello, this is C.J. Parsons," she said.

"Are you the lawyer connected with that case with the rangers?"

She hesitated.

"Yes I am," she said, "and who is this?"

"An interested party," she said, "Someone who knows a lot about a past dealing that both Kilroy and Nick were involved in before they decided to plunder this town."

"What do you want from me," she said.

"A meeting at the burned out barn on the Wyatt ranch," the voice said, "It will be worth your while."

"I'll think about it," she said, "and I won't be going alone."

"Don't think about it too long," the caller said, "or you'll miss your chance to bring down these crooks."

C.J. looked at Sydney.

"Would you like to go to a meeting at the Wyatt ranch," she asked.

"I guess so," she said, "Anything interesting happening."

"Someone's promising some evidence that Kilroy and Nick have tried to defraud small towns before coming to Silver Lode."

Sydney thought about it and shrugged.

"Okay, why not," she said, "I have a couple hours to kill before heading back."

"We'll stop by the ranch to drop off Butterfly," C.J. said.

Butterfly overheard them.

"Why don't you just drop me off at Carter's and Reed's ranch," she said, "It's closer to the lake and their mom will be there."

C.J. thought about it.

"Okay, we should be there in a few minutes."

They drove down the narrow road taking them off the main highway, the black truck tailing them.


	41. Chapter 41

Chapter 41---The latest in this fanfiction story. I hope you enjoy reading it and thanks for the feedback. Hope those in the U.S. have a Happy and safe 4th!

* * *

Matt tossed and turned in his hospital restlessly. A nurse walked in the room to ask him what was wrong and he just asked her to fetch his clothes for him so that he could change into them and get out of that place. She looked at his chart and then shook her head at him.

"You know the doctor's orders," she said, "Your lungs have taken quite a beating in that fire."

Matt coughed.

"They feel a lot better now," he said.

"Uh huh," she said, noting something in his chart, "I can tell that just by the way you sound."

"You can't keep me here," he protested.

"No we can't Mr. Houston," she said, "but if you walk out that door and then pass out in the hallway due to complications from your smoke inhalation, then leaving's not going to do you much good."

"I feel perfectly fine," he said.

The nurse shook her head.

"Looks can be deceiving," she said, "not that I'm criticizing yours. I mean, I read the article all about you and I find the whole…package very interesting."

Matt narrowed his eyes.

"What?"

"Well, I was one of the people that responded to it by sending you an email," she said, "but I never heard back from you. But then I can see why, if you're out there doing crazy things to end up in here."

"Are you making a pass at me," he asked.

The nurse shrugged.

"I'm just making an observation Mr. Houston though if you invited me out for a drink, I wouldn't turn out down," she said.

"Oh you wouldn't," he said, trying to figure out how many steps it would take him to get to the closet which held his clothes.

The nurse frowned.

"I see from your chart that you kept a woman friend in here after hours."

She shook her head.

"Tsk, tsk," she added, "That could cost you an extra day in here."

He opened his mouth to protest.

"You keep a record of everyone who comes in and visits me," he asked.

"Well, this woman did spend the whole night here," the nurse said, "Didn't leave until early morning."

"We just slept together," he said, "now why didn't that come out the way I meant it?"

She smiled at him.

"Whatever you say," she said, "but the place for you right now is tucked in bed so you can get better and no more thinking about getting yourself into any more trouble."

* * *

C.J. drove the rover down the bumpy road to Carter and Reed's ranch. Sydney found herself bouncing up and down and not all that pleased about it.

"Does this have to be so rough?"

"I didn't build this road," C.J. said, "It's not much further to go until we get there."

"So why are we going to the burned out barn on the Wyatt place anyway?"

"I got a source who's meeting with me there with more information to bring down Kilroy and his partners," C.J. said.

Sydney frowned.

"Why do they have to do it all the way out here and not closer to civilization?"

C.J. looked out the windshield to look for the fork in the road.

"Because they probably don't feel safe enough in town," she said, "After all, that's where the crooks all hang out."

Butterfly stuck her head up from the back seat.

"Are you going to drop me off first," she said.

C.J. shook her head.

"No, this meeting shouldn't last long," she said, "Why don't you wait in the car and then we'll head over there?"

Butterfly shrugged and put her iPod back over her ears sinking in her seat.

C.J. steered the rover off of the bumpy road to park it near the Wyatt ranch. Looking ahead, she could see the remains of the barn and someone standing there. She and Sydney got out of the car and locked it, telling Butterfly to remain inside but the younger girl was already into her music.

The two women walked up to the barn with Sydney pulling her shoes out of the muddy ground with distaste.

"I guess I'm not dressed for this," she said, "Is it always like this out on ranches?"

"Mostly," C.J. said, "Especially after it rains."

"Maybe I should go back to the car," Sydney said.

C.J. just looked at her and continued onward towards the man who stood ahead waiting for them. Sydney stumbled along behind her cursing her choice in footwear the entire way.

* * *

Butterfly had watched them leave the rover and had laid back to listen to her music until they returned. She hoped it wouldn't be too long because she really looked forward to meeting up with Carter and going back to the lake to do some fishing. Not that they would actually be doing much fiction but that was the explanation that made Chris breathe a little easier. She didn't hear another vehicle pull up nearby and a group of men get out of it.

* * *

Jed entered Matt's hospital room, bringing in some chiliburgers from the diner that he had smuggled past the nurses' desk.

"I thought you might like this better than hospital food," he said, tossing him a bag.

Matt opened it up and removed a hamburger. He quickly took a huge bite out of it.

"So when are they going to let you out of here," Jed asked.

Matt frowned.

"They're trying to hold me prisoner here," he said, "I'm ready to leave right now."

"They released Jonathan," Jed said, "Rhonda took him back to the ranch."

Matt put his burger down.

"Then I'm leaving too," he said, "I've got a lot of work to do. They can't keep me here."

"It can wait," Jed said, "Just listen to the way your voice sounds. You need to rest."

"Someone needs to stop Kilroy and Nick before they kill someone," Matt said, "and we know that Daniels isn't going to lift a finger except to help those guys."

"Jonathan's been on the phone all night bringing in some federal pressure."

"But he doesn't work for them anymore and didn't he burn a lot of bridges," Matt said, "So how much help can he bring down?"

Jed scratched his head.

"Apparently enough," he said, "Jonathan must have a lot of friends there still to have gotten them so involved. A bunch of them will be here sometime tomorrow. Arson investigators. FBI and other federal agents."

Matt just looked at him in amazement.

"You're kidding, right?"

"No joke," Jed said, "Beginning tomorrow, it should be raining feds in Silver Lode."

Matt smiled.

"I should give C.J. a call and tell her," he said, "She'll have a few things to say about that…and to them."

"Oh she and Sydney drove off from here in a hurry a while ago," Jed said, "Someone told me they had just been seen coming from Daniels' office."

"Wasted energy if you ask me," Matt said, "Why were they there?"

"Do you need to ask," Jed said, "C.J.'s not taking the attempt against your life very well Matt. My guess is that she was down there demanding that he do something about it."

Matt sighed.

"And of course, he may promise a lot and do nothing," he said, "or tell her it all happened from some natural gas explosion and not an arson attack."

Jed nodded.

"He'll whitewash it for the people paying him off."

"And his answers aren't going to satisfy C.J.," Matt said, "So she'll go look elsewhere."

"Where do you think C.J. and Sydney would go?"

Matt gave it some thought.

"Maybe they're going out to meet with someone to get them more goods on Kilroy and his men," Matt said, "C.J. does have a few anonymous sources in this case. She could be talking with anyone of them right now."

"Out there with Sydney," Jed asked, "She must not have felt comfortable going out by herself."

Matt searched for his cell phone.

"I'll give her a call."

No one answered.

* * *

C.J. and Sydney approached the man who stood by a pile of charred timbers. He shifted nervously from one foot to the other.

"I didn't think you'd show up," the man said.

"Your call sounded urgent," C.J. said, "but I brought someone with me."

The man sized her up.

"The reporter," he said, "I saw her video that she posted on the fire last night."

C.J. narrowed her eyes.

"What do you know about the fire," she said.

A wave of fear passed through the man's face.

"I know everything," he said, "I helped set it."

C.J. and Sydney exchanged looks.

"You are saying that you planted the explosive," C.J. asked.

Sydney's eyes grew huge and her mouth snarled.

"How could you," she said, "Those innocent people…"

"Sydney," C.J. started.

Sydney turned to look at her.

"People could have died in that explosion," she said, "and this man here is saying he's responsible."

"Yes he is Sydney," C.J. said, "and we've got to listen to what he has to say."

Sydney waved her finger.

"Do you even feel bad about what you did?"

C.J. put her hand over her face and shook her head.

"Sydney, shut up!"

The reporter started to say something but snapped her mouth closed. C.J returned to her line of questioning.

"Why did you call me all the way over here to tell me that you set that explosive?"

The man started kicking pieces of the wood on the ground.

"I lay up all night unable to sleep, thinking of the people that could have died in that fire."

C.J. crossed her arms.

"They were all very lucky to get out," she said, "It was a very close call for some of them."

"I realize that. I do have a conscience," the man said, "the men I work for don't."

C.J. pursed her lips.

"And who might they be?"

"Not so fast," the man said, "I need a guarantee for my safety if I provide you with that information."

"It's not like we don't know who's been responsible for these criminal actions all along," C.J. said, "It would be helpful to have some confirmation."

The man nodded.

"Perhaps I can provide you with that much."

"I hope you'll provide us with something useful," C.J. said, "You were the one who called us all the way out here."

Sydney's mouth dropped.

"Are you always this rude to your sources?"

C.J. looked at her.

"Only when I sense that there might be an ulterior motive at work."

The man looked at her and then started to sweat.

"If you've changed your mind…"

He shook his head. Then both of the women heard some branches crackling and looked up.

"We've got company," Sydney said as she saw Nick and three other men approach.

C.J. turned to the man.

"Did you know these men were coming," she said, "or did you call them?"

The man froze in place, trembling.

"No, no….I had no idea…Oh man," he said, as he started to move away from the women.

Before he could take off running, Nick pulled out his gun and fired two shots. A few yards away, the man crumpled to the ground.

Sydney's mouth hung open.

"What the hell did you just do," she said.

"He just shot a man right in front of us," C.J. said, "which means…"

Nick finished her words.

"The two of you are coming with us back to the truck," he said, "You can come nicely or not. That's your choice."

C.J. and Sydney looked at each other and made their choice.

* * *

Butterfly had been listening to her music, when suddenly what she thought were two gunshots pierced the air. She pulled out her iPod plugs and peered out the window. She saw the group of men surrounding C.J. and Sydney and another man lying down on the ground.

A chill grabbed her heart as she realized what had happened. She wondered if the men could see her in the car and decided that their attention was focused on the woman. What should she do? The one thing she did know was that she couldn't stay here. She had to get help.

Then she heard yelling as she watched C.J. struggling with two of the men, while Sydney started screaming and trying to hit another guy with an object that looked like a shoe. Butterfly watched for a moment, frozen in place at the sight. Then she saw a man hit C.J. and knock her to the ground. That's when she realized it was time to act.

The men dragged C.J. and a struggling Sydney back to what looked like a truck. Butterfly still noticed they weren't looking in her direction so she looked around to see how far she was from Carter's ranch and saw that it was about a half mile down the dirt road. She knew if she ran the whole way, she could get there in a matter of minutes. So she slowly opened the back door and stepped out of the rover, careful where she planted her footstep. She walked slowly away from the Rover and when she could no longer see the men, she took off running.

* * *

C.J. opened her eyes and winced at pain in her head as she felt two strong hands on her arms dragging her some place. She heard Sydney's voice next to hers and out of the corner of her eye saw the woman stumbling along barefoot. When the men reached the truck, they pushed the women against the side of it.

"Search them," Nick said, "I know this one packs a weapon."

Hands started running up and down their bodies including up and down the insides of their legs. C.J. closed her eyes but knew they wouldn't find anything. She had left her gun in the car.

"They're empty," one of the men said, shoving them aside.

Nick grabbed C.J. by the arm.

"Now you know that we can't afford to allow either you or the reporter to live," he said, "After all, you just witnessed me committing a murder. I'm usually not this careless but desperate times…"

She just stared at him.

"So what are you going to do," she said, "Shoot us too and just leave us here?"

Nick thought about it. Then he smiled and stroked her face.

"No, we're going to have some fun with you ladies first," he said, "Give you some nice memories to take with you."

C.J. and Sydney looked at each other horrified. C.J. forced a smile on her face.

"I'm sorry Nick, but just looking at you makes me retch," C.J. said, "So maybe you should just shoot me right here and now."

He ripped at her shirt, pulling it down over one of her shoulders.

"Oh you'd like that," Nick said, "but I'm in control here, not you but don't worry I think you're going to like that."

Sydney appeared too shocked to say anything.

"Tie up their hands and put them in the back of the truck," Nick said.

"Where are we going boss," one of the men asked.

"You know the place."

* * *

Butterfly's lungs burned as she kept on running to Carter's ranch. She regretted now that she hadn't focused on more athletic pursuits and had wasted her time on trying to be a film maker. Her muscles tensed and cramped as she pushed herself even harder, not stopping until she reached Carter's driveway. When she saw him standing there with his brother, Reed, she stopped and bent over, retching up her breakfast.

They both came running up to her.

"What's the matter," Carter asked.

She couldn't speak for several moments, just trembled and then she found her voice.

"Nick and some of his guys took C.J. and that reporter woman in their truck someplace," she said.

Carter and Reed looked at each other.

"What," Reed said, "When did this happen?"

Butterfly struggled to regain her breath.

"Just a while ago at that place where the barn burned down," she said.

"The Wyatt ranch," Reed said.

"They were going there to talk to one of C.J.'s sources about something and these men just showed up. I didn't see anything but then I heard some gunshots and I looked up and a man was on the ground."

Reed looked towards the Wyatt ranch.

"Did they see you," he asked.

Butterfly shook her head.

"I don't think so."

Reed and his brother headed back into the ranch house.

"We'd better call and alert the others," he said.

"What about calling Sheriff Daniels," Carter asked.

Reed looked at his younger brother, who had put his arm around Butterfly's trembling shoulder as they approached the door.

"Yeah right."

* * *

Nick's truck bounced down a very rocky road and C.J. knew that he was heading up into the mountains or through the pass to get to a valley on the other side. She tried to work her hands free but they had been knotted tightly. She tried to rub them against a sharp edge in the truck and they loosened somewhat but not enough.

She knew the area that they were driving through as she had ridden Sienna through this part of the mountains many times.

"What are we going to do," Sydney asked not for the first time.

"I'm thinking," C.J. said, looking around the bed of the truck for anything they could use.

"Man, I really screwed up when I decided to follow you today," Sydney said, "Those men are going to kill us after they're done with us."

"We're not going to give them that chance," C.J. said, "We're going to get out of here."

"How are we going to do that," Sydney said, "Jump out of a moving truck?"

C.J.'s face looked grim.

"Exactly," she said.

"We'll end up splattered on some tree somewhere."

C.J. shook her head.

"No we won't," she said, "There's a fire trail coming up ahead and they're going to have to slow down before it. That's when we'll make our move."

Sydney tried to rub her tied wrists like C.J. had been doing.

"That's where you'll make your move," she corrected.

C.J. sighed.

"Sydney, it's your only chance to get out of this alive," C.J. said, "They will kill us. They have to now that we've witnessed Nick commit murder."

"And he seemed like such a gentleman whenever I talked to him," Sydney said.

"And in case you missed it, he also let it slip that he's killed before," C.J. said.

"Oh, that."

"So when we reach the fire trail I'm going to tell you when to jump and I want you to do it Sydney," C.J. said.

Sydney looked at the road ahead of them and nodded.

* * *

Jed rushed into Matt's hospital room.

"Get your clothes," he said, "We're getting out of here."

Matt looked up from the newspaper he had been reading.

"I tried that earlier and it didn't work," he said.

"C.J. and Sydney are both missing," Jed said.

Matt threw his paper down.

"Missing," he said, "What the hell are you talking about?"

"Butterfly saw the whole thing," Jed said.

"So where did this happen?"

"At the Wyatt ranch near the burned out barn," Jed said, "It was Nick and his guys. It looked like C.J. and Sydney were meeting with a source of some kind and Nick and his goon squad showed up and shot and killed the man right in front of them."

"Oh my God."

"Then they took C.J. and Sydney away in a vehicle," Jed said, "Reed said Butterfly told him it was a black pickup."

Matt jumped out of bed and went to the closet to get his clothes.

"We've got to get out to that ranch," he said, "Were the police sent?"

"I called for the state police before I came here," he said, "They're on their way."

"They've got to get there before anyone can remove the body or any evidence," Matt said, from the bathroom where he changed into his clothes.

"They'll get there as soon as they can," Jed said, "I haven't seen any movement from Daniels' office yet so maybe Nick hasn't called him."

"Maybe Nick's in way over his head to do anything," Matt said, "I've got to find him before anything happens to C.J. or Sydney."

"Where do you think he would take them?"

Matt shook his head.

"I haven't the faintest idea," he said, "Maybe something at the site will tell us."

* * *

"I've almost got my hands worked free," C.J. said, "but we're getting close."

Sydney looked around her.

"How close," she said.

"A minute or so," C.J. said, "You're going to have to get ready to jump and then roll, and then get up and start running."

"You make it sound so simple," Sydney said, "What if we like break our ankles or something."

"Then we'll crawl," C.J. said, "But if we time it well, it should be okay."

"But our hands are tied," Sydney protested.

"We'll be dead if we stay in here," C.J. said.

"I get your point," Sydney said, "Okay, just tell me when to jump."

The truck approached the turnoff for the fire trail and sure enough, Nick slowed the truck down. C.J. looked over towards the raised up hillside that she knew was coming. The soft earth would cushion much of the shock from their landing.

"Okay….now," C.J. said and leaped off the truck. She landed on her side and tucking herself in rolled down into a little gully just past where the hill rose off from the road. At first, she felt the wind get knocked out of her but quickly recovered and bracing herself against a tree root in the tiny gully sprung to her feet.

She saw that Sydney had landed nearby but still lay on the ground.

"Get up Sydney," she said, walking over to her, "Use me to balance yourself."

C.J. stayed steady while Sydney grabbed at her with her bound hands to raise herself up on her feet.

"Did they see us," Sydney said as the truck had just turned the corner.

"We're not sticking around long enough to find out," C.J. said, "Come on and we're going to have to move very fast."

"I lost my shoes, remember," Sydney said.

C.J. gestured up the hill.

"Come on," she said, "We've got to get moving."

Both she and Sydney heard the sound of a vehicle approaching and as C.J. glanced behind her, she saw the black truck backtracking.

"Damn, they know we ditched," she said, "Come on, we need to pick it up…now."

The two women ran into a grove of trees right ahead of them.


	42. Chapter 42

Chapter 42---Here's the latest chapter of my fanfiction. Thanks for reading, hope you like it and thanks for the comments!

* * *

C.J. ran up the hillside, with Sydney trailing behind her without a second look behind. She had heard the revving of a car engine so she knew that the men were returning to look for them. She also knew what would happen if they found her and Sydney.

"Slow down," Sydney said, stumbling up the hillside holding onto exposed tree roots with her bound hands.

C.J. looked down at her.

"We don't have much time," she said, "and not much of a head start."

Sydney looked around her.

"Do you even know where we are," she said, "or where we're going."

C.J. nodded.

"I think so," she said, "we just have to get up this gully, run up the rest of the hillside and there should be some boulders on the other side. Not a bad place to hide."

"We're tied up and I don't have any shoes," Sydney complained.

"You're just going to have to do the best you can," C.J. said, "if those men catch up with us…"

"I know, I know," Sydney said, "I'm going. I just hope the ground gets a little softer."

"It should, until we get close to those rocks," C.J. said, "but if we lose them there, we can get these ropes off of our wrists."

They reached the crest of the gully and climbed up to the top where they met up with the hillside. Ahead of them stood the boulders and they took off running . C.J. took one look behind them and didn't see anyone but she swore that she heard branches breaking in the gully and a men's voice swearing. The men were right behind them, just out of sight and the women had to move fast enough to keep it that way.

Sydney felt her barefoot sinking in the marshy meadow and she grimaced as she pulled them out. She kept losing ground and C.J. waited when she fell too far behind.

"Come on," she said, as they neared the rocks.

C.J. looked at crevices for them to hide inside but none seemed large enough.

"We don't have much time," she said, "See what you can find."

Sydney nodded and started looking.

"Is this what you're looking for," she said, finally.

C.J. looked where Sydney pointed.

"That looks pretty spacious," she said, inspecting it, "Get down on your stomach and crawl in. Hurry."

Sydney grumbled as she tried to fit under the space. Finally, she made it through and C.J. took one look behind her before she joined her. Darkness met them as they realized they had no idea how much space they had at their disposal.

"It smells damp," Sydney said.

"There might be a river or even a spring nearby," C.J. said as she sat up and felt relieved that her head didn't brush the ceiling.

"How long do we have to…"

C.J. told her to be quiet as she listened for movement and voices outside. She heard what she recognized as Nick's voice telling his men to search carefully, saying that the women couldn't have gone far.

"We have to be patient," C.J. said, "and very still and quiet. We don't know how long they'll be here."

"Until they find us," Sydney fretted.

"They won't," C.J. said, "but they might stick around a while trying. I've done this before. It usually works."

Sydney just looked at her as they both crouched in the quiet darkness. C.J. closed her eyes, thinking of a plan of escape.

* * *

Matt stood with Jed and several other men at the burned out remnants of the barn on the old Wyatt ranch. He hoped that he would find clues of what had happened to C.J. and Sydney but all they found was a dead body of a man shot point blank.

"I see some tire tracks," Jed said, and Matt followed him where they returned to the dirt road.

"Where did these men go," Matt asked.

"They could be anywhere," Jed said, "Including up in the mountains."

"It doesn't make sense for them to head back into town," Matt said.

"Okay, then they might be heading to the other side of the valley," Jed said.

"How much head start did they get," Matt asked.

"Probably about an hour," Jed said, "It would have been longer if it hadn't been for Butterfly."

Matt rubbed the bridge of his nose.

"That still doesn't give us much time," he said, "We'd better get a bunch of the men to work towards finding them."

Jed nodded.

"We'll meet at the diner," he said, "Bonnie can do the phone tree."

"I wonder if Sheriff Daniels has decided to show up after all," Jed said.

Matt shook his head.

"He's just going to engage in his usual coverup," he said, "at least until the feds get here."

"Jonathan really came through on that," Jed said, "A couple of them are in town interviewing people about what's been going on here."

"Are they going to help us find C.J. and Sydney?"

Jed nodded.

"They sent several agents out to come out to this murder scene," he said, "They are looking into the alleged disappearance of the two women."

Matt raised a brow.

"Alleged disappearance?"

Jed frowned.

"Their words not mine," he said.

"Her rover's parked over there," Matt said, "Let's see if we can find anything in it."

* * *

C.J. and Sydney sat very still in the enclave, listening for footsteps or other noises coming from the outside. They listened to curses and shouts for a while, which would recede into the distance and then return at full volume right next to them. C.J. figured the men were looking around the boulders. She froze when she heard Nick's voice, willing her heart beat to be quiet.

"How long are we going to have to stay here," Sydney asked.

"Until we know for sure they're gone," C.J. said.

"How are we going to know that," Sydney countered.

"When it's been quiet for a while."

C.J. shifted around a little but space was limited. Sydney's eyes followed her movements the best they could in the dark.

"What are you doing," she asked.

"Looking for a sharp edge to cut the ropes off," C.J. said, "We've got to lose them before we get out of here."

She found one that satisfied her and rubbed the ropes against it.

"At least they tied us in the front," C.J. said, "They did us a favor."

Sydney snorted.

"Gee, I'll have to remember to thank them when they find us."

C.J. felt the ropes loosen on her wrists.

"I think it's working," she said.

"Really," Sydney said, trying to take a closer look.

"Just a little bit more…"

C.J. finally tore through the last fiber of the rope and pulled her wrists apart.

"Here, now I can untie yours," she said, "Just turn around."

"Easier said than done," Sydney muttered.

C.J started to work on the ropes. They had been tied tight so she knew it would take a while. That and the noise outside made it clear neither of them were going any place soon.

"How are you doing," Sydney said, "They don't feel any different, though I think I'm losing circulation in my hands."

"I'm doing the best I can," C.J. said, "They tied them pretty tight."

"Even if you untie me, then what are we going to do," Sydney said, "We can't stay here forever."

"No we can't," C.J. agreed, "but there are people looking for us right now. "

"Yeah, Nick and his men."

"No I'm talking about Houston and the others," C.J. said.

"Yeah a posse of ranchers led by one of the sexiest bachelors alive," Sydney said, "How's that going to help?"

C.J. worked through the last of the knots in the ropes on Sydney's wrists.

"They won't stop looking until they find us," she said, "I know Houston won't."

"What about the police," Sydney said, "I'm sure Daniels is rushing his men to find us right now, given where his loyalties lie."

C.J. shook her head.

"When did you figure that out," she said.

Sydney glared.

"I'm not stupid," she said, "I just want to believe in the sanctity of some things like law and order and civilized societies and gentlemen…"

C.J. smiled.

"I wouldn't rest my hopes on any of those things being uniform," she said, "They exist but not everywhere."

Sydney pulled her wrists apart and the last of the rope fell to the ground.

"So who are what are we supposed to trust then," Sydney said, rubbing her wrists.

"I trust in those people who are out there looking for us," C.J. said, "I trust them with my life."

"Maybe you can afford to do that," she said, "You haven't broken every heart in town."

C.J. suppressed a smile.

"Houston and Jed have saved my life more than once," she said, "and the ranchers are a good group of honest men who know this land better than anyone else. We don't need the police or sheriff looking for us."

* * *

Matt and Jed looked inside the rover but didn't find much except C.J.'s gun and her purse. Nothing about her meeting with the dead man currently lying not too far away.

"I don't know why she left her gun," Matt said.

"It probably wouldn't have mattered," Jed said, "I'm thinking they were ambushed and maybe not having it saved their lives."

Matt came out from searching the car and shook his head.

"I wish there were some clues here," he said, "Just something that might tell us where Nick and his men took them."

Jed sighed.

"We'd better head back to town and meet with the others," he said.

"I'm glad they're helping us," Matt said.

"They know how C.J. and you have put yourselves out and in danger helping them save their land," Jed said, "They will do whatever it takes, however long it takes to make sure those two women are found safe."

"C.J. can handle herself," Matt said, "It's not like she's had a shortage of dangerous situations in her life."

"I know," Jed said, "I'm sure she'll do the best that she can, to get herself and Sydney away from those men."

They reached Jed's car and got in. As they left, they saw some state police officers arrive at the crime scene to process it.

"I'm glad that they're getting involved and this isn't just handed off to Sheriff Daniels," Matt said.

Jed grimaced.

"I'm sure he'll show up here like a bad cold eventually," he said, "If just to find out how deep his buddies are in this mess."

As Jed drove back into town, Matt kept looking out the window, hoping he would see a sign of where the women were but nothing met him except empty highway.

* * *

"Houston, do you even know where we're going," C.J. said, looking out the window and then casting him a doubtful look.

Matt just looked straight ahead as he drove.

"We're going on a road trip," he said, "We're just supposed to go where we feel like going."

C.J. looked for a map in the glove compartment.

"Where do you keep your maps," she asked, not finding them there.

"C.J., I don't need any maps."

Her eye brows rose a notch.

"So how do you where we're going," she said, "Do you even know what state we're in?"

He looked out the window for a moment, and then looked back at her, a hint of a smile on his face.

"Nebraska."

She nodded.

"Okay, do you know what part?"

He sighed.

"This is supposed to be a chance away from our regular lives before we head back to college and just drive where our instincts take us."

"I know," she said, "I really needed to get away from Dodge for a while so I'm not complaining but I'd like some idea where we're going."

He grew silent for a moment, his eyes focused on the road, his hands on the wheel. She looked over at him pensively.

"Look, I'm sorry about you and Pearl," she said, "I know you really cared about her."

He shrugged.

"It just didn't work out," he said, "Our lives are going into two different directions."

"She's wrong to just dump you like that," C.J. said, "You're a great guy but if she can't realize that…"

"C.J., I don't want to discuss it," he said, quietly.

She nodded.

"Okay," she said, "But if you do, you know where to find me."

He glanced over at her and she gave him a smile. He nodded slowly.

"I might take you up on that later on," he said.

She ran her hand through her mahogany hair and he watched, seeing a lot of beauty in her casual movement. He loved to look at her when she wasn't looking. Certainly that wasn't outside the boundaries of friendship.

"So what about you and Derek, your boss?"

She turned to look at him again, her cheeks flushed.

"I didn't know he was married," she said, "and when I did find out, I left."

He heard the hint of sadness in her voice and when she saw him look at her, she turned her face towards the window suddenly taken in by the scenery.

"Yeah, Julia told me you called her to pick you up from the hotel," Matt said.

C.J. looked at him in surprise.

"I told her not to tell anyone," she said, looking down at her hands.

"I'm not just anyone," he said gently.

"I know," she said, "but I was worried about what you might think about me after that whole mess."

"Why," he said, "You did the right thing. You left him, before he could do you more harm and before you could cause pain for his family."

"I never wanted that," she said, "I just really had worshiped him afar for his legal skills," she said, "When I got the chance to work with him on a research project, I took it. I didn't know there were fringe benefits…for him."

Matt sighed.

"I'll tell you what," he said, "Let's just put this behind us and enjoy this trip wherever we wind up."

She looked at him and nodded.

"If you throw a side trip into Boston," she said, "it's a deal."

"You still thinking about going to Harvard?"

She looked at him, wondering why he thought she would have any hesitation.

"There's one jerk teaching out there," she said, "but that's the school of my dreams since I was a little girl. I wouldn't up that vision I've carried inside of me for anyone. And I wouldn't give anyone the satisfaction of taking it away from me."

"Here, here," Matt said, as they both continued driving across America.

* * *

C.J. looked around the dark cramped space where she and Sydney had sat for several hours. At least their hands were untied, but the darkness had begun to feel oppressive and they sat hoping that Nick and his men would complete their search near the boulders and move along someplace else. She wondered where Houston was, and whether he would find them. She found herself missing him and telling herself that she would see him again soon.

"It's been quiet for a while," Sydney said.

C.J. had been sitting and listening and realized that it had been a while since she had heard any signs that Nick and the others still hung around. Still, you could never be too careful. They could be standing quiet outside hoping to lure the two women out of their hiding place so they could catch them. C.J. had to be absolutely sure that there was no chance of that happening before they left their hiding place.

"We should wait a few more minutes," she said, finally.

Sydney sighed.

"You said that 20 minutes ago," she said.

"And I'll say it in 20 minutes from now if that's what will keep us safe," C.J. said, "We need to be sure they're gone. We only get one chance at this."

"It's cramped and my legs, I can't feel them anymore," Sydney complained.

"When the sun goes down, it might get cooler," C.J. said, "Hopefully we can leave before that."

"Then do what?"

"If it's night," C.J. said, "then we need to find shelter. If not, maybe we could head up the ridge to the hunting cabin."

"You mean there's a house around here?"

"A small cabin," C.J. said, "I've been there before and hidden them before. It's pretty secluded."

"But what if Nick and his guys find it first?"

"That's a chance we'll have to take," she said, "but they don't the area and they won't stay around as soon as the night chill settles in. My guess is that they'll stop searching and start back tomorrow."

Sydney tried to rub the circulation back in her feet.

"I hope you're right," she said.

"Besides, there are clothes in the cabin including shoes," C.J. said, "and you need to get something on your feet soon."

"I can barely feel them now," Sydney said.

C.J. looked around her and then through the crevice out into the fading sunlight. She knew they had to leave and seek better shelter soon but would they encounter Nick and his men in the process?

"Okay, we'll wait another hour," she said, "and then we'll leave, but if Houston and the others are looking for us, we want them to find us."

"But not the bad guys, right?"

"Definitely not," C.J. said, "So we have to be very careful when we do leave."

Sydney nodded.

* * *

Matt and Jed walked into the diner where the rest of the ranchers waited. They sat next to Reed, and looked around them, once again impressed with Bonnie's phone tree efforts.

"She did a great job," Matt said.

Jed nodded. They watched as Joe came up to the table.

"Hi Joe," Jed said, "Are you joining the search party?"

Joe nodded.

"I've got training from my volunteer firefighting," he said, "I want to find these women."

Jed looked at Matt.

"Sydney's going to be fine Joe," Jed said, "We plan on finding both of them."

Matt nodded.

"We're not going to stop until we do," he said.

Matt worried about C.J. though. He hoped that she and Sydney had gotten away from their captors and were hiding out in the mountains. Matt knew that C.J. knew enough about the layout of the land to know where to go and hide from the men if they were chasing them. Still, there was danger out there, both from men ruthless enough to kill two women for witnessing a murder and the elements of a mountain range could be unpredictable themselves.

"I hope they're not hurt," he said.

Jed looked at Matt, understanding what was going through his head.

"C.J. will be fine," he said, "and we will find her. She's gone through much worse than this."

Matt nodded.

"And she deserved to be spared from any more life and death battles."

"Yes she does," Jed said, "but she's got to make it through this one and so does Sydney. And we've got to help them the best we can."

"I plan to do whatever it takes," Matt said, "I'm not losing the woman I love to anyone or anything."

"She loves you so much," Jed said, "Nothing's going to keep her from returning to you."

Matt closed his eyes, willing that to be true, that the love of his life would be safely back in his arms soon.

* * *

C.J. began crawling out of the crevice, figuring it was now or never. She looked around carefully while lying on her belly but saw and heard nothing.

"I think they're gone," she said, to Sydney who crawled behind her.

Both women finally got out from the crevice and stumbled to their feet.

"Man, we'd better find some place to get some shelter," C.J. said, "without running into them."

Sydney nodded and then began walking gingerly alongside C.J. as they continued past the boulders up to a ridge where they hoped a cabin would be waiting.


	43. Chapter 43

Chapter 43--Here's the latest chapter of this fanfiction. I hope that you enjoy it, thanks for reading and thanks for the comments.

* * *

Matt looked at Jed and Joe as they brought together supplies for the search party to take with them into the mountains. Despite attempts to talk him out of it, Joe, the auto mechanic, volunteer fireman and occasionally stripper had insisted he was going to include himself in any potential rescue operation involving the two women.

Matt finally agreed, because he understood the man's motivation stemmed from strong feelings towards a woman he had once loved and still cared about deeply even though she had burned him. He recognized that his own feelings about a particular woman played a role in his determination to find them before it was too late so he shared that in common with Joe.

"It's going to be dangerous," Matt said to Joe.

Joe nodded.

"So's trying to rescue people from a burning building like the other night," Joe said, "I'm here to do my part."

"Sydney's lucky to have someone like you in her corner," Matt said, "I hope someday she's smart enough to realize it."

"C.J.'s a wonderful woman," Joe said, "who knows what and who she wants in her life. That is what's going to keep her alive. Hopefully it will rub off on Sydney."

Matt rubbed his head.

"I have a feeling that she and Sydney got away from the men," he said, "C.J. knows that her chances are better getting out of that car even if she has to jump out and she can survive in these mountains."

Joe sighed.

"I wish Sydney had those skills," he said, "but I think she's smarter than a lot of people get her credit for being."

"She'll be fine," Jed said.

"We've still got to find them," Joe said, "and hope they got away from Nick and his cronies."

"Speaking of which, we need to have a word with Kilroy," Matt said, "After all, he's the one that's paying everyone."

"Kilroy's involved," Joe asked.

"We think he gave the green light to Nick to really go after his enemies."

Joe frowned.

"Why go after Sydney," he said, "She wasn't even involved in fighting the development project. It's not really her thing."

Jed looked at Matt.

"We think she just was in the wrong place at the wrong time with C.J.," Jed said, "C.J.'s been the focus of the threats."

"But it's just a development project," Joe said, "Why would Kilroy and his men go this far…"

"There's no development at all," Matt said, "It's a scam. They're buying up land cheap based on fake geological surveys and then they're going to set up a mining operation."

Joe's eyes widened.

"How do you know all this?"

"We don't…yet," Matt said, "But the evidence is pointing towards an interest in valuable ores and not turning this area into the next Aspen."

"So there's more money involved than any of us thought," Joe said.

"A lot more," Matt said, "and their greed has pushed them to try to kill anyone who gets in their way."

Jed nodded.

"I doubt that this poor guy was the first that Nick ever killed," he said, "There had been some mysterious deaths over a series of years on other projects handled by Nick and Kilroy's firm. Even a young reporter disappeared one night, never to be seen again. The feds knew all this and did nothing about it."

"Well where are we going to start looking for them," Joe said, looking around the room.

"We're going to start with Kilroy," Matt said.

* * *

"It's going to get dark soon," Sydney said as she and C.J. walked through a grove of trees on a mountain side, "Are you sure you know where you're going?"

"Yeah, the cabin should be in this direction," C.J. said, "We need to find some shelter. It gets cold at night here even in the summer. "

"Why don't we head back down?"

C.J. looked in that direction.

"We'd never made it down before nightfall and we risk running into those guys," C.J. said.

"How are you sure they're not thinking the same thing we are," Sydney said.

"Because underneath it all, Nick's a coward," C.J. said, "He won't travel deep into the mountains. He'll sit with his guys at the bottom waiting for us to come down."

"He can't afford to let us go," Sydney said.

"I know," C.J. said, "but I don't think he's anticipating that we'd actually go further up. At least I hope I'm right."

Sydney's hands shot up.

"You hope," she said, "I need to rest a bit."

"We just did," C.J. said, "We have to keep moving."

"I don't have shoes on like you do," she pointed out.

"All the more reason to make that cabin before the temperature starts to drop."

"You know, I wish I'd spent more time hiking and doing more outdoorsy things," Sydney said, "but inside I guess I'm just a city girl at heart."

C.J. shook her head.

"Not me," she said, "I feel stifled in cities."

"But you live in Houston," Sydney said, "and that's a big city."

"True," C.J. admitted, "but when I'm done here and I go back home, I'm going to buy some land and build a house on it, maybe have a small ranch."

Sydney crossed her arms.

"By yourself," she said, "How will you manage?"

"I'll hire some people to help out when I need it," C.J. said, "I grew up on a ranch. I know how to run one."

"But you're a lawyer," Sydney said, "I can't believe you'd give that up just to hang out on a ranch."

"Who says you have to give up one to do the other," C.J. said, "I can do both."

"You know, I talked to Matt and he said he was planning on returning to nature I guess you'd call it and buying some land too."

C.J. smiled.

"Maybe we'll be neighbors," she said.

"I wonder how his girlfriend will handle the rural lifestyle," Sydney said.

C.J.'s brow furrowed.

"I imagine she'll handle it just fine," she said, "if it's what she wants and she loves him."

Sydney grew silent.

"You know I made a pass at him," she said, "I thought here's a good-looking sexy guy who's single and I thought why not."

"So what else is new," C.J. said, "You have a reputation for coming on to all of your feature story subjects."

Sydney sighed.

"That rumor has grown so larger than life," she said, "I haven't slept with all of them."

"But you wanted to sleep with Houston, right?"

Sydney just looked at her and nodded.

"Wouldn't any red-blooded woman just looking at him?"

C.J. couldn't argue with that.

"But I didn't," Sydney said, "He turned me down. Very nicely, but he did and he said he wasn't looking, that he was a one-woman man."

C.J. looked away so Sydney couldn't read her expression.

"Oh he did, did he?"

"Yeah, but I'd appreciate it if you could just keep this between the two of us and not tell his girlfriend about it," Sydney said.

C.J. suppressed a smile.

"Why are you worried about her finding out," she said, "You think she's going to come after you or something?"

"Sometimes they do," Sydney said, "I've been chased up and down the main strip in Silver Lode a time or two by a jealous girlfriend."

"I'm not surprised," C.J. said, as they started walking again, "Can you really blame them?"

Sydney gave it some thought.

"No, I guess not," she said, finally, "but if they were that good at being girlfriends, then their men wouldn't be interested in what I had to offer, would they?"

C.J. bit her tongue. Honestly, there were times she wanted to just leave the home wrecking, man poaching reporter in the wilderness to fend for herself, but then again, if it hadn't been for her, Sydney wouldn't be wandering around in the mountains trying to get away from a homicidal group of greedy developers.

"It sounds to me like it's the men who might be the ones with the problems," C.J. said, "After all, if they were serious about their relationships with these women, then they wouldn't be chasing everything with a skirt within their vicinity."

Sydney pressed her lips together.

"I am not a 'skirt'," she said, "I'm a respected journalist of a newspaper."

C.J. smiled, wondering if these men gave that part of her resume much thought when chasing after her. She doubted it.

"Hey, you know Joe the mechanic seems to be a very nice guy," C.J. offered.

Sydney looked up at her.

"Oh he's okay," she said, "It was fun while it lasted."

"I think you broke his heart," C.J. said, "At least that's the impression I got when I spoke with him before the bachelorette party."

Sydney shrugged.

"He knew what he was getting into, he's a big boy," she said, "He knew it wasn't a permanent thing with me."

"You shouldn't play with a man's feelings like that," C.J. said, "when a man puts his feelings on the line like he did, it can leave him feeling vulnerable."

Sydney thought about that then she met C.J.'s glance with skepticism.

"Like you don't play with your boyfriend's feelings," she said, "All women do that, don't they?"

C.J.'s eyes grew serious.

"No, never," she said, "We've both supported each other through so much that's happened in our lives that we've built trust in each other in respecting each others' feelings."

"That sounds nice," Sydney said, "but in the real world…"

C.J. shook her head.

"In the real world, there are men and women who have relationships that are much different than the way you view them," C.J. said, "and thank goodness for that."

Sydney frowned.

"I've never seen anything out there that's different," she said.

C.J. concentrated in navigating herself over a fallen log.

"Then you haven't been looking at the world outside yourself," she said, "You either haven't allowed yourself to see these relationships…or you've tossed them away."

Sydney struggled to keep up.

"Hey wait," she said, "You're probably right and I know I can change…"

* * *

Jonathan and Rhonda joined Matt and Jed just outside the diner.

"Where you heading," Jonathan asked.

"Off to find Kilroy and ask him some questions," Matt said.

Jonathan narrowed his eyes.

"Why Kilroy?"

"Has anyone brought you up to speed with what's been happening here," Matt asked.

Jonathan and Rhonda looked at each other.

"I've heard bits and pieces from different people and have been trying to put them together," Jonathan said.

"I told him what I knew," Rhonda said, "but he'll need to know more because someone's going to have to talk to all these law enforcement people who have arrived."

Jonathan looked Matt in the eye.

"Do I need to be worried about you confronting Kilroy?"

Matt looked back.

"I'm going to ask him where Nick and his men hang out," Matt said, "and that's just for starters."

"Matt, maybe you'd better let the police handle it," Jonathan said.

Matt looked at Jed.

"Should you or I be the ones to tell him about how Sheriff Daniels operates in this town," Matt said.

Jed looked at Jonathan.

"He's probably on Kilroy's payroll," he said.

"Well, we've got the state police here and the feds are coming," Jonathan said, "So why don't you let them handle Kilroy?"

Matt sighed.

"Because C.J. and another woman were kidnapped by some of Kilroy's men after witnessing a murder committed by one of those men," Matt said, "We have no idea where they are or what's been done to them."

"These men can find them Matt," Jonathan said, "Look, I know you don't trust the feds."

"They've given me ample reason not to," Matt said, "and I've heard that you're no longer wearing one of their black suits."

Jonathan looked sheepish.

"I'm not going to argue with you about whether or not you should trust federal agents," he said, "but these ones are coming and they're going to do the right investigation."

Matt rubbed the bridge of his nose.

"That's great," he said, "but I'm not waiting until they get started when every second counts."

"How do you know if you push Kilroy he won't clamp up or yell for his lawyer," Jonathan said.

"I don't know that," Matt said, "but I'm going to find him anyway. He's the only one still in the vicinity that can lead us to those two ladies."

Jonathan sighed.

"Then at least let me help you."

* * *

The sky began to get darker, as the sun sunk lower on the horizon. C.J. looked around her as the shadows grew larger and the air began to cool.

"It's going to get dark soon," Sydney said.

"I don't know if we're going to the cabin," C.J. said, "we might have to find some other shelter."

"Like where?"

C.J. looked around.

"We might have to find a cave somewhere," she said, "or build something."

"You've got to be kidding," Sydney said.

C.J. shook her head.

"I'm not," she said, "When night comes, that will be pretty clear."

"Maybe if we just go faster," Sydney said, "We could still make it."

* * *

Kilroy sat in his office, sweating waiting for the visit that he knew was coming now that outside law enforcement agencies were coming to Silver Lode. After Nick's latest escapade, it would only be a matter of time until they showed up at his door. He lit a cigar and puffed away, before his phone rang.

The noise nearly made him jump out of his chair but he gathered himself together before he picked up the phone.

"Nick, is that you," he said, "I told you not to call me here when you're in trouble."

"What trouble," Nick said, "The women got away but it's only a matter of time until we find them and take care of them."

"You don't have any time," Kilroy said, "The feds and state police are either here already or on their way and it's only a matter of time…"

"Now wait a minute," Nick said, "I just told you that we will have this problem taken care of by tomorrow."

"Why did you do it," Kilroy said, "especially in front of witnesses."

"I had no choice," Nick said.

"Now we have a dead body that's being investigated and the disappearances of two women," Kilroy said, "and that's just for starters."

"I told you, we'll have the women taken care of by tomorrow," Nick said.

"Nick, if those women turn up dead," Kilroy said, "Those investigators are going to come straight to our door."

"But if we don't take care of them," Nick said, "They've already seen too much to be allowed to live."

Kilroy sighed.

"Then you do something about it, but don't let it trace back to me," he said, "and let this be the very last time that you take a life."

Kilroy hung up the phone and looked up to see one of his assistants at the doorway.

"What is it Larry," he asked.

The man hesitated.

"There are two gentlemen who insist on seeing you right now."

"Who are they?"

"One of them's a Matt Houston," Larry said, "He was most insistent and said he intends on seeing you right now."

Kilroy nodded.

"Send them back," he said.

"But…"

"It's okay, I'll handle it."

Kilroy watched Larry leave and he thought about how he would handle the situation. He knew why they were dropping by of course. He leaned back in his chair as both Matt and Jed entered the room.

"How may I help you gentlemen," he said.

The two men looked at each other.

"You know why we're here," Matt said, "We want to know what your partner did to those two women."

Kilroy clasped his hands together.

"I don't know what you mean," he said, "What women?"

Matt shook his head.

"Don't play dumb with me," he said, "They disappeared right after they witnessed your partner, Nick murder a man in cold blood. An eyewitness saw them being kidnapped and hauled off in a black pickup truck."

Kilroy's face grew a shade paler but he tried not to show it.

"I don't know what you're talking about," he said, "Why would my partner kill a man and then abduct two women?"

Matt kept his temper in check.

"I know why he kidnapped the women," he said, "I don't know why he killed that man…yet."

"Meaning,"

"I imagine this man was one of your guys who had a conscience and was telling these two ladies what your scam was," Matt said, "Maybe that's why he had to die."

Kilroy laughed derisively.

"That's ridiculous," he said, "and besides, you have no proof."

"Both the fed and state police are looking for proof to link you to the murder and the kidnapping," Matt said, "They've also noticed that people who come forward on projects you and Nick have had in other states have a tendency to turn up dead or not at all."

"Oh so now we're serial killing businessmen," Kilroy leaned back and folded his arms. "Continue to entertain me with your lurid innuendo until my lawyer arrives to sue you for slander. It's been a slow morning."

Matt reached over and grabbed Kilroy by the collar.

"It's about to pick up a lot when the state police come by and question you," he said, "But all I'm interested in where those two women are so if you have anything to share, I suggest you start telling me right now."

Kilroy looked at Jed.

"Do you see how this man can't control his temper?"

Jed shrugged.

"Just give him the information," he said, "It will be a lot easier that way and the sooner you do it, the sooner we'll be out of your hair."

"I've got nothing to say," Kilroy protested, "He'll have to ask Nick."

"So you do admit knowing what happened," Matt said, "Now we're getting somewhere."

"Let me go," Kilroy said, "and I'll talk."

Matt didn't budge.

"Tell me where they are and I'll let you go."

"I…don't know," Kilroy stammered, "Nick handles that side of the business."

"Do you know where Nick hangs up his hat," Matt said.

"He rents a cabin not too far from here," Kilroy said, "though I'll doubt you'll find him there."

"Where is it," Matt said.

Kilroy haltingly gave him directions.

"It's a place to start," Jed said.

Matt finally released Kilroy who fell back in his chair and tried to straighten his collar.

"If Nick took them, then they're already dead by now," Kilroy said, "Unless by chance they got away."

Matt looked at the developer sitting in his chair as if he wished he could strangle him.

Jed looked at Matt.

"Come on, let's go see if we can track down Nick," Jed said, "or any traces of him."

Matt nodded and they both left Kilroy just as several state police officers passed them in the hallway.

"I guess they've already connected this whole incident back to its source," Jed said.

"They won't until they rope up everyone who's been involved in this scam from the beginning," Matt said, "But we've got to find Nick. He and his men are the only ones who know where those women are."

As they left the building, Jed turned to look at Matt.

"Matt, what he said back there…"

Matt shook his head.

"They're still alive," he said, "I know they are but we've still got to find them while there's still time."

* * *

"I'm not going in there," Sydney said, balking in front of a small hole in the side of a mountain.

"It'll keep us sheltered until morning," C.J. said, "That is if no one's living there already."

Sydney's eyes widened and she shook her head.

"What if there's a bear in there?"

C.J. took a more thorough look at it.

"We'll find out soon enough," she said, "We've got to get some shelter."

Sydney stood there with her arms folded.

"You go in first," she said.

C.J. sighed and cautiously entered the cave. What she saw inside encouraged her to keep going. It was more spacious than it looked from the outside and better yet, empty.

"It's safe, you can come right in," she told Sydney.

Sydney paused a few moments before slowly entering the cave.

"Is this the right time to tell you that I get nervous in enclosed spaces?"

"You can sit by the entrance then," C.J. said, "by the fire."

"What fire?"

"The one we'll be building after we find some suitable wood," C.J. said, leaving the cave, "Come on, I think I saw some not too far away."

"How'd you learn about all this survival in the wilderness stuff anyway," Sydney asked.

"I used to go camping with a friend of mine," C.J. said, "What he learned, he taught me."

C.J. started picking up some sticks.

"You're not talking about Matt are you," Sydney said.

"Like I've said, we've been best friends for years," C.J. said, "since I first moved out to Texas."

"You really think he's going to find us?"

C.J. nodded.

"He won't stop looking until he does," she said, "You can depend on that. I was hiding out here under a different name, living a different life and he still found me."

"That must have been quite an adventure," Sydney said, as they carried the wood back to the cave.

C.J.'s face grew still.

"I wouldn't exactly call it that," she said, "but I never would have made it back if it hadn't been for him and I wouldn't be here."

"Narrowly escaping death from homicidal men out in the wilderness," Sydney finished.

C.J. smiled.

"Just another day…"

Sydney frowned.

"You're not serious."

"When Houston and I worked as investigators together, we were in many dangerous situations like this one," C.J. said, "No matter how bad the situation got, we always turned the tables on the bad guys."

"But this is different…"

C.J. dropped her wood by the entrance of the cave.

"No it's not," she said, "It'll be the same here, just wait and see."

"So we just sit and wait then."

C.J. shook her head.

"No," she said, "We have to keep ourselves alive and try to get back to where we can find them or they find us and then we'll be safe."

Sydney sighed.

"Sounds like a tall order to me."

"We don't have any choice in the matter," C.J. said, "We do for ourselves until help finds us or we die, it's as plain as that. And I'm not going to die."

And with those words, she knew she wouldn't. Sydney, however, still had her doubts as night began to fall on the mountain.


	44. Chapter 44

Chapter 44---Here's the latest chapter of this story. Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoy it and thanks for the feedback!

* * *

The two women sat near the entrance of the small cave.

"Well the fire's an improvement," Sydney said grudgingly, inching closer to it.

C.J. looked over at her.

"It helps a lot to keep us alive," she said, "The nights up here still get pretty cold."

"I try to stay out of the wilderness," Sydney said.

C.J. laughed.

"Then what are doing living in the middle of the Rockies?"

Sydney glared at her.

"This is where I grew up," she said, "I thought when I left Silver Lode I'd never come back but I did after a while."

"Why?"

"Why was does any small town girl come back," Sydney said, "My big time dreams of being a famous correspondent didn't quite work out the way I planned."

C.J. nodded.

"Sometimes that happens," she said, "Usually because those dreams weren't real in the first place."

Sydney crossed her arms.

"What do you mean that they're not real," she said, "I knew what I really wanted. I just didn't get it."

"But you came back home," C.J. said, "You're working for your town newspaper writing features on people who pass through."

"Nothing wrong with that," Sydney said, "I've met a lot of interesting guys."

"I can see that," C.J. said, dryly, "As long as it makes you happy, there's nothing wrong with changing your dreams to fit your life."

"So what did you do," Sydney said, "I bet you started out as a little girl with dreams of arguing a case against the Supreme Court."

C.J. smiled.

"Actually I wanted to be on the Supreme Court," she said, "but I've put my degree to good use in a way that's very fulfilling."

Sydney nodded.

"Yes, you worked with Matt building his business and his detective agency," she said, "but now you're in Houston and he's in L.A."

C.J. pursed her lips.

"My life changed last year," she said, "and my dreams did too."

"So now you work for a women foundation," Sydney said, "and do a lot of advocacy for women especially those who've been trafficked."

C.J. nodded.

"I wouldn't do anything else," she said, "but it wasn't easy getting to that point. It was quite a journey."

Sydney looked confused.

"So what are you doing in Silver Lode," she asked, "Why are you helping the ranchers?"

"Because it's a way of giving back to those who helped me when I most needed it," she said, "They saved my life."

"Oh because you were almost killed getting away from that trafficking ring."

"Yes, but they saved me in other ways," C.J. said, "Now it's my turn to help save their way of life."

"But it's nearly gotten you killed," Sydney said, "Hell, it's probably going to get both of us killed."

C.J. shook her head.

"No that's not going to happen," she said, "We're going to get out of this."

"How?"

"We'll have to think of a way to outsmart Nick and his men," C.J. said, "when they come back looking for us."

* * *

Matt picked up his phone. He had been driving with Jed towards Nick's cabin, when it rang. It was his business partner in Los Angeles.

"Brody, what are you calling about?"

"I'm just calling to check up on you," Brody said, "I hadn't heard from you in a while."

Matt sighed.

"I've been very busy," he said, "There's a lot going on here."

"I can see that," Brody said, "What's been going on?"

"We found out what Kilroy and Nick are really up to," Matt said, "but then Nick kidnapped C.J. and a local reporter and we're trying to find them."

It took Brody a while to recover.

"Are you serious?"

"They were taken after they witnessed Nick murdering a former associate of his," Matt said, "But we think they might have escaped."

"You guys don't waste any time," Brody said.

"We don't know where they went," Matt said, "if they did get away, we need to find them before Nick and his men do."

"Do you need my help," Brody said, "I can get on the next plane."

"You can help more on your end by finding as much information on Kilroy and his partners as you can," Matt said, "We're following a lead on where Nick might be hanging out."

"Be careful with him," Brody said, "He's desperate at this point and will do anything to get away."

"He won't be getting away," Matt said, "because we're going to get to him first."

"Don't do anything that's going to wind up with me taking over your business," Brody said, "As much as I would like to."

"Don't get too attached to that thought," Matt said, "Call be back when you have some news."

He heard Brody sigh on the other end.

"Will do," he said, "Watch your back."

Matt put his phone away. Jed looked at him.

"We should be at Nick's cabin in a few minutes," he said, "We need to be ready for anything."

Matt planned to be.

* * *

Sydney looked over at C.J.

"I'm hungry," she said, "We should have brought snacks."

C.J. dropped another branch on the fire.

"We could go outside and get some food," she said, "These mountains are probably filled with edible plants."

Sydney wrinkled her nose.

"No thanks," she said, "I think I'll wait."

C.J. smiled.

"Why are you smiling," Sydney demanded, "Some men tried to kill us today."

C.J. shrugged.

"Well, I suppose we could run around the mountains freezing ourselves to death by getting worked up into a good panic," she said, "That's not something I'd choose."

"It would make more sense to panic," Sydney said.

"Why," C.J. said, "Because we're women?"

Sydney paused.

"Because we might not make it off this mountain alive," she said, "If Nick and his men don't get us, the mountain will."

C.J. expanded her arms.

"Look at all this," she said, about the cave, "It's fairly spacious, we have shelter and a nice fire," she said, "There's no pizza delivery service out here but that's all that's missing."

Sydney leaned back and closed her eyes.

"We could be dead tomorrow," she said, "I should have never come with you but I let my curiosity get the best of me."

C.J. looked at her.

"That's a necessary trait in your profession," she said, "Curiosity, what else leads you to the good stories?"

Sydney shook her head.

"I do features," she said, "I don't write the serious news. But then again, there's not much of that in Silver Lode. At least not until you arrived."

C.J. stood up slowly.

"We haven't gotten to the last chapter yet," she said.

"You mean the part where we die," Sydney said, resignation seeping in her voice.

"We're not going to die," C.J. said, "We're going to get out of here and bust Nick and his men."

"Oh yeah," Sydney said, "You said you had some master plan to get us out of this mess."

C.J. stretched, easing the cramps out of her arms.

"I'm still working on it," she said, "But I've been through much worse than this in my life and here I am. This shouldn't be too bad."

Sydney brushed the dirt off of her pants.

"I read about it," she said, "It must been awful what you experienced."

C.J. paused.

"It was," she said, "But I got through it. I had my friends to help me."

"But you must have felt all alone."

"I did…at first," C.J. said, "When I first came to the ranch. I had to leave my life behind for a while, my name and all the people I loved. But I met nice people like Thea and Jed there who helped me a lot."

"Did they know the truth?"

C.J. sat back down again.

"No, only Thea," she said, "I wasn't allowed to tell anyone. Jonathan was the one who brought me there."

"After you escaped," Sydney said.

C.J. nodded.

"I called him when I reached the town," she said, "as sure as I knew I was far enough away. He dropped everything and came to help me. By then, I was too sick to notice what was going on but he saved my life."

"He's a great guy," Sydney said, "and I don't just mean…well you know."

"He's great," C.J. agreed, "But we're better friends."

"Like you and Matt?"

C.J. started to say something.

"Aren't you best friends," Sydney asked.

"Well yeah… we are," C.J. said, "We've been friends most of our lives."

"Is his girlfriend cool with that?"

C.J. turned her head, looking at the flames caressing the wood. She didn't want to think about him because despite what she had told Sydney, she wasn't sure they were going to be able to escape from Nick and his thugs. But every time she closed her eyes she could see him, and her. Together, the way they were meant to be with anything dangerous far away.

"We should really try to get some sleep," she said, "There's plenty of room inside the cave."

"To sleep on the ground," Sydney said, distastefully.

"We're going to need our rest for tomorrow," C.J. said, "Because you can bet that Nick and his men will be coming back for us."

"I don't know if I can sleep here," she said, "I'm not good in cramped places."

"It's not that bad," C.J. said, looking around her, "I've slept in a lot worse places."

Sydney sniffed.

"I went camping once with a guy," she said, "That was bad enough."

"The camping or the guy?"

Sydney thought about it.

"Both."

"You're tough on the men in your life," C.J. noted.

Sydney made a face.

"He pitched our tent in a patch of poison ivy."

"Well, that is pretty bad," C.J. said, "but hardly worth banishment."

Sydney sniffed.

"We broke up for a whole variety of reasons and not just one thing."

"Okay, that happens," C.J. said, "but why throw in the towel on every guy?"

Sydney had a difficult time answering that question. C.J. could see through the expressions on her face that she tried.

She staked out a spot for herself near a wall, but still near the fire so she could feel its warmth like a blanket.

"You know, Joe's a pretty good guy," she said, "I think he cares a lot about you."

Sydney made a face.

"I told him I wasn't interested in all that," she said.

"What's all that?"

"Marriage and kids," Sydney said, "I'm not ready for all that and I'm not sure Joe's the right guy."

"Is any guy the right one for you," C.J. asked.

Sydney harrumphed.

"Maybe," she said, "I probably haven't found the right guy yet."

"Maybe you're too picky," C.J. said, "No guy's perfect just like we're not."

"I'm not that picky," Sydney said, "I just have standards. Don't you?"

"Of course," C.J. said, "but even with standards, you can still make mistakes. I nearly got engaged once to a murderer."

"Oh yeah," Sydney said, "Didn't he work for a television network as a reporter and wind up in prison?"

C.J. nodded.

"He didn't just report on award-winning news stories," C.J. said, "He created them and people died at his hands, just so he could get a more lucrative anchor position in New York City. He wanted me to go with him."

"But you didn't of course."

"No, but I almost did," C.J. said, "Houston found out what he was up to long before I did and he tried to warn me…as a friend. But I didn't want to see it so I bit his head off."

"How'd he handle that?"

"He let me go so I could find out the truth for myself," C.J. said, "He knew that was the only way I could leave Robert before he had any chance to hurt me."

"So Matt was looking out for you," Sydney said, "He seems to do that a lot."

C.J. smiled.

"Yes he does," she said, "We look out for each other and that time it was his turn though I made it difficult for him."

"Well Robert Tyler looked pretty hot in the tabloid photos," Sydney said, "So I can see why a woman would pause…"

"He was handsome, but it was only skin deep," C.J. said, "There are men like that in the world and then there's the ones who are great underneath. "

"Maybe…"

"Men like Houston and like…Joe."

Sydney shook her head.

"Joe thought I was an airhead anyway," she said, "It's better we went our separate ways."

"I think you're wrong," C.J. said, "He seemed very interested in talking about you."

Sydney sighed.

"It's too late anyway," she said, "Especially if we're going to die before we can see him again."

Sydney stood up and walked towards the back of the cave, dismissing that topic.

C.J. just shook her head.

* * *

Jed pointed up ahead.

"It should be just up the road," he said.

* * *

Matt looked and could make out a couple of small dwellings. Nick's cabin should be one of them, he thought. His car jostled down the rocky trail and he parked and shut off the lights before he reached the clearing where the cabins were located.

"We've got to be very careful how we approach them," he said, "Especially if they're there."

"Hopefully they're asleep," Jed said, "But that's not likely and it's likely that Kilroy called them to warn them as soon as we left him."

"If they're there, they're probably planning on how they're going to track down the women when it's light."

"You're pretty sure that the women got away from them," Jed said.

"I know they did," Matt said, "They're probably up in the mountains somewhere. Hopefully, they've found shelter for the night."

"They need to," Jed said, "It still gets awfully cold up there in the summer."

They left the car and started traveling up the dark road on foot, the small rocks crunching beneath their shoes.

"They're probably armed," Jed said.

"I'm counting on it."

"We're not going to do C.J. and Sydney any good if we get killed in an ambush," Jed said.

"We're not going to get killed," Matt said, "If that's what Nick and his boys got planned, they've got another thing coming."

They reached the clearing.

"Which cabin is it," Jed asked.

"That one," Matt said, pointing to it, "We'll get as close as we can to the window."

The two men crept up to the window and looked inside.

"There's a woman in there," Jed said, "Do you think that's his wife?"

"Maybe," Matt said, "If so, I wonder if she knows what her husband's been up to?"

"Do you think he's there in another room?"

Matt put his hand where his gun rested.

"That's what we need to find out."

* * *

C.J. lay down on the hard ground, trying to get comfortable. Resting her head on her hands, she tried to close her eyes but she kept thinking of him. Her heart sank at the thought that she might never see him again.

* * *

They woke up in each other's arms as the sunlight streamed through the window. She opened her eyes first and saw him and realized that last night and the entire weekend hadn't been a dream. Her movement rousted him from his sleep.

"Is it morning yet," he said, "How 'bout some breakfast?"

She snuggled in closer, her head resting against his chest.

"Maybe in a few minutes," she said, "I've got everything I need right here."

"That works for me."

"How long until we have to head back," she asked.

"In a few hours maybe," he said, "There's no rush. I'll call and make sure the plane's ready."

"I can't believe just several days ago someone tried to kill us," she said.

He stroked her hair.

"A couple of days ago, you won your battle."

"The court part anyway," she said, "And now here we are."

He paused.

"C.J., I'm not going back to the ranch like nothing happened this weekend."

She raised her head and looked at him.

"I'm not asking you to do that," she said, "It's just that I don't know what to do now."

"Are you sorry about this?"

She shook her head.

"I'll never be sorry," she said, "I'm just feeling like this is new ground for me. I didn't think I could ever feel like this again."

"You always had that ability," Matt said, "I'm glad I got to share that with you."

"I know that now," she said, "but it's been very hard to learn that a major part of my life and who I am hadn't ended on that hard floor. I'm still trying to get there."

He looked at her and saw that her eyes looked troubled. He caressed her face.

"I meant what I said," he said, "I want this to be the start of something."

She smiled at his earnest expression.

"Me too," she said, "I think I've wanted that for a long time."

"Okay, now that we've got that decided, I think we've just got to take it one day at a time and enjoy ourselves," he said, "I'm in this for the long haul."

She nodded.

"I want to do that," she said, "I just don't want our friendship…"

He put a finger on her lips.

"I think we've done enough talking for a while," he said.

She agreed when his lips met her own and they communicated in other ways for a while.

* * *

C.J.'s eyes blinked open and she saw only the darkness inside the cave, felt the flickering of the flames near its opening and heard the breath of Sydney sleeping nearby. Her arms felt colder than they had in her dreams. She knew she wouldn't rest until she was back in his arms again. Now all she had to do was think of a plan to thwart Nick's plan to kill her and Sydney before he had the chance.

* * *

Matt and Jed slowly approached the door of the cabin. They drew their weapons but kept them hidden from sight. Matt walked up and knocked on the door. A moment later, an attractive woman answered. She looked them both over, her face set in a frown.

"Who are you and what are you doing here at this hour of the night?"

Matt and Jed just looked at each other, thinking fast of what to do next.


	45. Chapter 45

Chapter 45---I've done some writing during 's most recent outage and here's the latest chapter of this story. I hope you enjoy it, thanks for reading and thanks for the feedback!

* * *

Matt and Jed looked at each other and then at the irate woman standing in the doorway. They didn't think she was armed but they weren't sure she was alone. Nick and his men could be anywhere inside there, waiting to strike. If that were the case, then they had to be ready.

"I asked who are you and what you are doing here," the woman repeated.

Matt mentally ran through his check list of possible strategies and realized that sometimes, honesty was truly the best policy.

"We're looking for Nick," Matt said, "Is he here with you?"

Her eyes flashed suspicion.

"Who are you and why do you want to know?"

Then again in a case like this, honesty could only take a person so far.

"We're…looking for jobs," Matt said, gesturing to Jed, "We're in construction and with the economy taking a downturn and all, we just thought…"

She folded her arms and Matt wasn't sure she was buying it.

"My husband would hand out some jobs to you," she finished.

They nodded.

"Yeah, we were hoping," Matt said,

She sighed.

"You and half the construction workers in the county," she said, "He's out at the moment. Might not be back tonight."

Matt scratched his head.

"Do you know where he might be?"

"You sound mighty desperate for a job, what if you're trying to find him at this hour of the night."

Matt looked solemn.

"We are desperate," he said, "I've got a wife and six sons to feed and you know how much they can eat."

Matt saw her eyes glimmer in doubt.

"Where's the ring," she said, "or are you one of those married men who don't like to advertise it?"

"I…take it off for work," Matt said, "Listen, do you know where I can locate your husband? I told my wife I wouldn't come home until I had a job."

She sighed.

"He specifically told me that he didn't want to be disturbed," she said, "He's been under a lot of stress at work. "

"Is there anywhere that he hangs his hat when he's not working?"

She looked doubtful.

"Maybe I should call him," she said.

Matt held up his hand.

"There's no need to disturb him," he said, "We're sorry to have bothered you so late ma'am. We best get going on our way."

He and Jed started to walk away.

"Wait…"

They turned around and she smiled.

"He might be hanging out with some of his friends at a bar just down the main road," she said, "They play pool there some nights."

She gave them directions.

"Thank you ma'am," Matt said, "We really appreciate you helping us. My wife will appreciate this."

"Good luck," she said, before closing her door.

They walked back to the car.

"She's a really nice lady," Jed said, "I wonder how much she's in the dark about her husband."

"We'll find out when we get to the bar just how much," Matt said.

"You think fast," Jed said, "I think she bought your story."

"I hate lying to a nice woman like that," Matt said, "but if it will help me find our two women, I'll do what it takes."

They got back in the car and pulled back onto the dirt road to the highway.

"Do you think we'll find him and his guys there?"

Matt looked straight ahead.

"Wherever they are, we'll find them," he said.

* * *

C.J. awoke hearing tossing and turning next to her. She sat up, rubbing her head.

"Sydney is that you or is it a bear?"

Sydney shot up and started looking around her.

"Where, where?"

"It's just me," C.J. said, "I thought I heard something moving around."

Sydney sighed.

"That was probably me," she said, "I'm not just one for sleeping in such cramped quarters."

C.J. tried to look at her watch.

"We've still got a few hours before it's light," she said, "We should really try to get some sleep. We'll need it with all the hiking will need to do when we leave here."

"We won't make it far without running into Nick and his men," Sydney said, "How long until they find us?"

"If we're careful, we might make it to the ranch."

"I thought we were miles away," Sydney said.

"I don't think so," C.J. said, "I think if we go up several trails, back down and then into the valley, we should be close to the lake."

Sydney threw up her arms.

"Oh great and then what?"

"Before we get that far, we might as well go to the cabin," C.J. said, "There should be some food and some clothes there and hopefully some shoes for you."

"I don't know if I can make it that far," Sydney said.

"You can and you have to Sydney," C.J. said, "It's the only way to get out of this alive."

Sydney paused, looking at the shadows that bounced on the walls of the cave from the smoldering fire.

"I should never have come with you," she said, "I'd be back at my home in my own bed having dreams about being an anchor woman in Denver or something."

"Well you're here and this is what you have to deal with," C.J. said, "but if we keep calm and our heads cool and have a plan, we should make it."

Sydney harrumphed.

"How reassuring," she said, "I don't regret the life I've lived. I just never planned on dying alone."

C.J. sighed.

"You're not alone and nobody's dying."

"I mean without a man in my life," Sydney said, "I thought I'd have it all figured out by now."

"What do you mean?"

"I know I said I wasn't ready for marriage and kids but I still wanted someone to come home to at the end of the day," Sydney said.

"Well, you kind of blew it with Joe," C.J. said, "but you have another chance."

"Chance," Sydney said, "What chance is there if we get murdered in cold blood?"

C.J. didn't even want to consider the possibility that would happen. After everything she had been through just to get where she was, she refused to let anyone let alone a thug like Nick take that away from her.

"I'm not dying on this mountain or anywhere else," she said, "I've got my life to go back to and my family."

"So what are you going to do when Nick finds us and he and his men aim their guns at our heads?"

C.J. ran her hand through her hair.

"Do whatever I have to do to stop him from killing us," she said, "even if it means killing him."

Sydney knew she meant it.

"You really would kill him."

C.J. looked at her hands.

"It wouldn't be my first choice," she said, "but he's not taking my life away."

Sydney remained silent for a moment.

"I don't know if I could kill anyone even in self-defense."

"I think anyone will if the situation requires," C.J. said, "Some times you really don't know how much you treasure your life until someone tries to take it away from you."

Sydney groaned.

"I'll take your word for it," she said, "I don't know what I'd do in that type of situation."

"That's why it's better to have a plan," C.J. said, "and we'll have one."

"I sure hope so," Sydney grumbled as she closed her eyes trying to get back to sleep.

C.J. got up and walked back to the fire to put some more branches on it. She really wasn't sure what the plan would be for avoiding Nick and his men, or more importantly, how to get away from them if they were caught. She put her hands out to feel the fire's warmth and thought about what to do next.

* * *

"It's cold in here," he said.

"Of course it is," C.J. told him, "We're locked in a freezer."

"We're not locked," he said, "The door just got…stuck."

"It locked Houston," she said, "and I wasn't the one who closed it behind me."

"Maybe they won't look in here because they figure we'd never hide inside a freezer."

They could almost hear footsteps and muffled voices outside the door.

"Shhhh," he said.

"I don't think they can hear us."

They both remained quietly shivering until the voices and footsteps receded.

"Well now that they're gone, what will we do?"

"Try to get out of here."

She blew a lock of hair out of her face.

"Well that's obvious," she said, "What's your plan?"

Matt looked up at C.J.

"I…don't have one."

She sighed.

"None at all?"

He folded his arms partly in protest but mostly to keep warm.

"I had one to catch the bad guys," he said, "I didn't even know about the freezer. I just thought it would be a good place to hide."

"Well it's the best place to hide," she conceded, "but we can't stay in here much longer."

"I know," he said, "I'll get us out of here."

She softened at the earnest look in his face and put her arm around his shoulders.

"We'll get out of here," she said, "We're new at this investigating business so there's bound to be a few glitches but next time…"

He looked at her.

"We'll have a plan that covers everything," he said, "including getting locked inside a meat freezer."

She looked around her at the sides of beef hanging around them.

"It's too bad we can't start a little fire and cook ourselves some of this while we're trying to figure out what to do next."

He laughed and watching her shiver in the cold, embraced her for a while as they waited for the cooks to find them.

* * *

C.J. smiled at that. They had gotten out of that jam soon enough and in one piece, albeit with numb fingers and toes. And after surviving some rookie mistakes with their earlier cases, the business grew as did their client base through advertising and word of mouth. Even after she moved to Houston, the agency thrived and he had to hire retired police officers to handle the caseload. Now he was thinking of giving it up, the excitement and unpredictability of each day in his dream career to move a thousand miles away to live with her.

He could always start another investigative agency from the ground up if he wanted to do so, but she knew he would miss L.A. and working there. His friends and family. She had made a clean break from L.A. because part of her would never be able to feel safe there again. Even walking into the building which housed their agency brought back terrifying memories that had faded with the passage of time but hadn't gone away.

She had built a life for herself in Houston that she couldn't walk away from, because she felt like she had given up so much of her life already. But she knew she could never walk away from Matt either. And she would leave Houston and try to pick up her life in L.A. haunted by her memories to ensure his happiness. If she made it out of this mess, she promised herself that she would at least consider it.

* * *

Matt and Jed got out of the car and approached the bar.

"Do you think we need to call some backup," Jed asked.

"They might not get here in time anyway," Matt said, "Let's just hope Nick doesn't have too many friends inside."

"He's got three or four guys he hangs around with," Jed said, thoughtfully, "I think we can handle them unless they call in reinforcements."

"We won't give them time," Matt said, "I'm going to make sure of that."

They entered the bar and saw that there was a group of men by the pool table and beer glasses sitting around.

Jed frowned.

"He's not here."

Matt looked at two men in the corner.

"But some of his sidekicks are," he said, "I think I'll start with them."

"Matt…"

He continued walking towards the two men. They saw him and looked at him, warily.

"Who, you and what do you want," one of them said.

"I'm wondering if you can help me," Matt said, "I'm looking for your buddy, Nick."

The two men looked at each other then back at Matt and Jed.

"What friend," the man said, "We don't know any Nick."

"Yeah that's right," the second man said, "Now get out of our way. You're ruining our game."

"So you play pool," Matt said, "Now a pool cue is great but it does have other good uses."

He picked one up and examined it. The two men watched him carefully.

"We've already got enough people for this game," the first man said.

Matt smiled.

"That's okay," he said, "because I don't plan on cutting in your game."

One man hitched up his pants.

"Then why are you here?"

Matt started examining the pool cue.

"Because I need to talk to Nick," he said, "You see your pool buddy Nick isn't here tonight because he killed a man earlier today."

The two men looked at each other quickly.

"What," the second man said, "Nick wouldn't kill anyone."

The first man sighed. So much for pretending they didn't know him, Matt thought. Finding out otherwise hadn't been too hard.

"Well you mustn't know your buddy too well," Matt said, "because he killed one of his own men in cold blood and now he and his other buddies are after two women who witnessed it."

"We don't know anything about that," the first man said.

The other guy nodded quickly.

"What he said."

Mat leaned closer, still holding the pool cue. Both men watched him nervously and backed up a step.

"I don't believe you," he said, "and you see this pool cue here. Unless you tell me everything you know about Nick and what he's up to, the only game of pool I'll be playing is with your head."

"Are you threatening us," the first man said.

Matt sighed. At least these men caught on fast.

"I'm promising you," he said, "Now one or both of you start talking."

The first man folded his arms and leered.

"Make me."

Matt didn't need permission but it helped and now he had something better, an invitation. He moved quickly before either man could react and pushed the first man against the wall, jamming the length of the pool cue against his neck.

The man stopped leering and started praying. Matt couldn't make out the prayer but he knew his actions had something to do with it.

"Speak up," Matt said, "and start answering my questions."

"I…."

The second man looked at his buddy alarmed.

"He can't talk," he said, "You're jamming his windpipe."

Matt looked closer.

"I don't think so," he said, "He's breathing fine. Now he needs to start talking."

The man looked at Jed. Jed nodded.

"You heard my friend," he said, "Now start singing. Where is Nick and where are the women?"

The man's eyes widened.

"I…We…don't know," he protested.

Matt pressed the cue.

"Try harder," he said, "Now my partner here's a nice guy. But I'm not if you start messing with my friends and Ms Parsons is at the top of the list."

The second man sighed.

"Carl, you have to tell him what you know or he'll kill you."

"He's bluffin'," Carl coughed.

"Oh I'm not bluffing," Matt said, "I won't kill you because I'm saving that for your buddy Nick if anything happens to those women but I will get an answer out of you."

Jed nodded.

"He will," he said, "You see I can't always control Matt here. I can try my best but I need your help. You need to answer his questions."

Matt pressed harder. Carl didn't like the look in his eyes.

"Okay…," he said, finally, "I don't know much but I'll tell you what I do."

Matt relaxed his pressure a little bit.

"Okay, then start talking," he said, "or I'll start squeezing again."

"No…no," Carl said, "Nick took off earlier this morning with two of his other friends. Said he had some jobs to do."

"And?"

"He looked desperate, even so for him," Carl said, "I got a bad feeling about seeing a different side of him but then we didn't see him again."

Matt digested that.

"Okay, so then what," he said, "Where did Nick head off to?"

"A ranch, the one where the barn burned down," Carl said, "The one that he had burned down."

"We know he was there," Matt said, "A witness saw him shoot one of his employees in front of the two women who are now missing."

"He might be at a clearing where he and his buddies often go drinking," Carl said, "It's not far away from that ranch."

"Start giving me directions," Matt said, still holding the cue, "Jed can write them down."

Carl did just that and after realizing he had gotten everything out of the guy, Matt finally released him and Carl stumbled backward, rubbing his neck.

"You're crazy…"

Jed looked at him.

"No he's not crazy," he said, "Nick is for threatening someone he loves."

And with that, Matt and Jed left the bar and went back to their car. Jed looked at Matt.

"I know never to cross you."

Matt shrugged.

"He'll live," he said, "Can't say the same thing about Nick if he hurts those women."

"They must have gotten away from him," Jed said, "Else Nick would have finished them off and he'd be back with his buddies at the bar as if nothing happened."

"We just got to hope they stay away from him long enough for us to find them," Matt said, "or him."

They reached the car and got inside.

"Matt, we need help on this one," Jed said, "We can't just face them by ourselves. We need to go back to town and get some reinforcements. We won't have trouble finding anyone."

Matt thought about it and then nodded. It would cut into the time they had left to find the women but he knew Jed was right.

"Let's go."

Jed shook his head.

"You're really good at being the 'bad cop'," he said, "I wish I'd had you as a partner."

* * *

C.J. rubbed her eyes, still unable to sleep. Sydney had finally fallen back asleep, which meant when dawn broke, she would be the more rested of the two of them. She kept thinking about him and wishing he were here with them. She stared at the roof of the cave for a long time and then suddenly, it came to her.

* * *

Matt sat in the car, driving back to town, thinking of her. He found his thoughts focusing on their conversation about what they would do once they left Colorado and went home. Right now, that meant they would pick up their lives more than a thousand miles apart. But he knew that his decision had been made. He would only be in L.A. long enough to set in motion his plans to move to Houston to be close to C.J. and the life she had built for herself there. He would miss his agency and his life but he knew he could start any business he wanted anywhere, but if he wanted to be near the woman he loved, then Houston would once again be where he lived. And while thinking about that on the drive back to Silver Lode, he thought that he would be coming back full circle.


	46. Chapter 46

Chapter 46---Here's the latest chapter of this FF story. Hope you like it, thanks for reading and for the feedback!

* * *

C.J. woke up with a start, to see that the fire had died and that pale sunlight spilled over into the entrance of the cave. She looked over and saw Sydney grimace.

"Oh my god," she said, "Get it off of me."

"What is it," C.J. asked.

Sydney jumped up and started brushing her clothes with her hands.

"I think it's a spider," she said, "but it's so huge."

"Everything's bigger in the mountains," C.J. said, stretching to get the kinks out of her muscles from sleeping on the ground.

"Do you think it's poisonous?"

C.J. thought about that.

"Do you feel weak or sweaty," she said, "Is any part of you numb or tingling?"

"No…but I felt it crawling on me."

C.J. brightened.

"Then it's probably gone by now," she said, "Probably more scared of you than you are of it."

"That's not possible."

C.J. sighed.

"We'd better get ready to start hiking," she said, "

"I don't know if I'm up to it," Sydney said, "My feet…"

C.J. ran her hand through her hair.

"If we don't get out of her, then Nick and his men will find us and you know what will happen then."

Sydney nodded slowly.

"Okay, fine but I don't think I'm going to be able to walk that fast."

"That will teach you to only wear high heels when chasing after your stories," C.J. said.

Sydney harrumphed.

"Like I said, I just do features," she said, "Like when the sexiest bachelor comes to town, stuff like that."

"Still, you should always be prepared."

Sydney rolled her eyes.

"Like a boy scout?"

"Because you never can be sure what's going to happen," C.J. said, "or who's going to come after you."

"Easy for you to say," Sydney protested, "You go looking for trouble."

"Not always."

"And if you didn't go looking for trouble, then your bodyguard would probably have more time to spend with his girlfriend."

"Maybe…"

"No you're always flirting with danger and seriously I think I have a better chance of finding a steady guy than you do."

C.J. wanted to laugh, but thinking of him made her heart hurt.

"I'll take my chances," she said, "I don't have much to worry about if you keep kicking nice men like Joe to the curb."

Sydney leaned against the wall of the cave while she rubbed one of her feet.

"Why do you keep bringing him up," she said, "We met, we had some good times and then we went our separate ways. Most relationships run their course and there's nothing you can do about that."

"True, but Joe still cares for you," C.J. said, "You really hurt him when you dumped him."

Sydney sniffed.

"That's none of your business," she said, "and he'll find someone else."

"I know it's not my business," C.J said, "and of course he will. A lot of women would love to have a relationship with a guy like Joe."

Sydney looked at C.J. warily.

"Like you?"

"If I were free, sure," C.J. said, "but I'm not so it's all academic."

Sydney waved her arms around the cave.

"All this is academic if we don't make it through this day alive," she said, "I think that's what we should focus on."

C.J. lifted her chin.

"Oh I intend to see the end of this day and tomorrow too," she said, "No one's going to take my future away from me."

"You sound so sure," Sydney said.

"I am sure," C.J. said, "I know that there's people looking for us and we just have to stay alive and ahead of Nick and his men until they find us."

"What if Nick finds us first?"

C.J. rubbed her eyes, because it did always come back to that question.

"Then we do whatever we have to do to stop him from killing us," she said.

Sydney's eyes widened.

"Even if it means killing him?

"We've already discussed this Sydney," C.J. said, "It'd be self-defense."

She shook her head.

"What if they don't believe us and put us back in that horrible jail cell?"

"They won't," she said, "We'll make them believe us. And Matt's got friends in higher law enforcement agencies that can pull Sheriff Daniels into line."

"You've got a lot of faith in Matt," Sydney said, "You really think he's going to be able to help us?"

C.J. smiled.

"I know he will," she said, "He's always been there when I've needed him whether I've known it or not."

* * *

"I'm going with you."

Matt looked up and saw the quiet determination on Joe's face and knew that talking him out of participating in the dangerous mission was going to be futile. At this point, he didn't even want to try because he understood how he felt. A woman he loved was missing too.

So he just nodded and Joe joined him and Jed. Jonathan pulled away from Rhonda and followed them.

"I'll stay here until the feds arrive with the apprehension team," he said, "unless you need me."

Matt looked at him.

"No, you wait here," he said, "We better get going. We don't know how much time we have to find them."

"We're going to start with Nick's hangout," Jed said, "We'll see if we can get some answers there."

Jonathan's face clouded.

"Be careful," he said and Rhonda nodded.

"Bring everyone back safely," was all she said.

Jonathan looked at his fiancée and wished he could share her confidence. She saw that on his face.

"Hey I know Matt can do this," she said, "You really should too by now."

"I don't doubt that but Nick's already getting a head start if he's out looking for them."

Rhonda smiled.

"Matt will make up time," she said, "I'll never forget how he came charging to the rescue single handedly at Piser's ranch. I never saw anything like that up to that point in my life."

"I know he'll find them," Jonathan said, "and the minute the feds get here, I'll send a team of them into the mountains."

Matt nodded.

"We'd better get going," Matt said, to Jed and Joe and they prepared to leave.

* * *

"Can't you go slower," Sydney said.

C.J. looked behind and saw that Sydney had fallen behind. She knew that the reporter's feet hurt more than she said but C.J. also sensed that they were being chased as acutely as she did the previous day. The cabin wasn't too far away, if they could just walk another mile or so.

"Come on, we're nearly there," she said, "You can make it."

"Where do you think they are now," Sydney said.

"The good guys or the bad guys?"

"Both."

C.J. stopped, her breath coming fast from the exertion.

"Nick's probably not too far behind us," she said, "Hopefully, he's not anticipating where we're heading."

"That wouldn't be good," Sydney agreed.

"As for Matt and Jed, I'm sure they're out trying to find us."

C.J. started walking again and Sydney struggled to keep up.

"How far do we have to walk," she asked.

"I think it's just over the bend and across the next ridge."

"That's pretty far," Sydney said, doubtfully.

"It looks further than it really is," C.J. said, "We can make it in about an hour."

"And then we just hole up in there until the cavalry arrives?"

"That's the plan," C.J. said, "We don't want to go looking for Nick by ourselves but we do need to be ready in case he finds us."

"How?"

"When we get to the cabin, we need to look for anything we can use as a weapon," C.J. said.

"It's a hunting cabin, isn't it," Sydney said, "Won't there be guns?"

"I don't know," she said, "When Jed and I hid out up there, there weren't any. Fortunately, the only person who found us was Matt."

"Oh great, then how are we going to defend ourselves against Nick and his men if they try to kill us?"

C.J. looked at her.

"We'll find a way," she said, as they continued walking up the side of the ridge.

* * *

They drove to the clearing where Nick and his buddies often went drinking .

"Do you think the feds will really come out and help a bunch of ranchers," Joe asked doubtfully.

"I think if Jonathan says they will, they'll be out," Jed said.

Matt just continued driving, looking forward, not able to think of anything but finding C.J. before any harm came to her.

"I think it's the next turnoff," Jed said.

Matt nodded.

"I'm hoping we catch them there before they have a chance to go out looking for them."

Jed noted the determination in Matt's voice.

"I hope so too," he said, "but we need to be prepared for whatever they throw at us."

"I will be."

They turned off the highway into a bumpy, dirt road that took them through a grove of trees and towards a clearing where there were several campsites. Matt saw that one of the fire pits had been used recently. He looked around the site but it looked abandoned. Still, he parked the car and the three men left quietly, without drawing their firearms.

Jed looked around.

"I guess we missed them," he said.

"Maybe," Matt said, as they reached the fire pit and he pushed some smoldering coals with his boot.

They heard some branches crackle in the distance but when they looked around, they only saw a squirrel scramble into the brush.

"We better look around to be sure," Jed said.

"I see a car over there," Joe said and the other two men followed him.

Matt drew his gun and the others did too as they cautiously proceeded to what looked like an abandoned car.

"I don't think its owner is still around," Joe said.

Suddenly, they heard footsteps and before they could turn around, two men approached, looking more surprised to see them than anything else.

Matt turned around and aimed his gun at them. They looked at each fearfully and then put their hands up.

"Hey take it easy man," one of them said, "We're just getting something out of our car."

"Dude, I think they're on something," the other said, raising his hands higher, "If you want our stash, there's not much left."

"Yeah," the other picked up, "Those men in the next campsite drank most of our booze."

Matt looked at Jed.

"Men," Matt asked, "Did you know them?"

"No man," the first man said, "We just provided some refreshments. They didn't want to party because they were not in festive moods."

"Yeah dude," the other agreed, "They were complaining about two bitches…"

Matt looked at him sharply and the man recoiled.

"Hey don't look at me like that," he said, "I'm just what is it called, paraphrasing…"

The other nodded quickly.

"Yeah, paraphrasing and these guys were talking about these women who got away from them," one man said, "guess they didn't like their idea of partying."

"Where are these men," Matt asked.

The two men looked at each other.

"We don't know," he said, "We passed out late last night. We woke up this morning just a few minutes ago and they're gone."

"How many were there?"

"Four of them," he said, "and one of them was a mean ass dude."

"Must be Nick," Jed said.

One man nodded his head.

"Yeah, that's his name," he said, "All he did was complain the whole time but he did hit the booze hard."

"Must have a hell of a hangover today," the other man said.

"I wonder how much of a head start they got," Joe said.

"Whatever it is, it won't be enough," Matt said.

The two men looked at them nervously.

"We told you everything we know," he said, "Can you like put the guns away?"

Matt and Jed looked at each other and lowered their guns.

"Thanks for your help," Jed said, as they left them.

"Whatever dude," one of the guys said.

The three of them went back to the car.

"They could be anywhere on the mountain," Jed said.

Matt paused for a moment, thoughtful.

"We're near the ridge where I saw that mustang, aren't we?"

Jed nodded.

"Yeah, just a couple of miles," he said. "Why?"

"I think I know where the women might be heading."

* * *

He stroked her head while she slept fitfully in the chair. Not even in sleep did she let her guard down. Jed had lain on the couch, his face ashen as he fought from succumbing to the searing pain of his gunshot wound. Matt had ridden his horse hard up the ridge to reach the cabin with a snow storm beating down behind him, hoping to get there before the hit men did. What he found was someone who turned out to be C.J. holding a gun at him. A few nerve-wracking seconds passed before she recognized him as her life-long friend rather than a hit man dispatched by the man who was hunting her down.

Nervous exhaustion had finally claimed her and she had fallen asleep, not long after he had entered into the warmth of the cabin.

He had noticed the scars etched on her face interlacing with her eyebrows and the deeper lines in her hands.

"No one knows exactly how she got those," Jed had said, "at least the broken wrist healed."

Matt rubbed his face with his hands.

"I've been looking all over for her since I got back," he said.

Jed had nodded slowly.

"You were gone a long time," he guessed, "and no one could find you to tell you."

Matt didn't know whether anyone would have come looking for him to tell him what happened to C.J. even if they had known where he was. Even when he arrived in L.A. ready to reclaim the life he had left six months earlier, even his closest friends and family kept him in the dark about what had happened in his absence. Now in hindsight, he understood why but the anger still ate at him.

"They kept her away from her past," Jed said, "The fastest way for a protected witness to get killed is when they try to reclaim any part, even the smallest, of the life they walked away from."

"I could have kept her safe," Matt argued, "I would never let anyone harm her."

Jed shook his head.

"These guys are much bigger than that," he said, "They infiltrated the highest levels of a federal law enforcement agency. That's how they found her."

"I know," Matt said, "That's how I found her too."

"They're never going to stop looking," Jed said, "Are you ready for that? Are you willing to do what needs to be done to bring her back?"

Matt looked at the sleeping figure and nodded but Jed wasn't finished.

"And then when that's done, are you ready to deal with the really hard part," Jed said, "which is getting her life back?"

Matt reached for one of her hands and held it in his own. Her fingers curled around his, their scars pressing against his skin.

"I'll do whatever it takes."

And when he made that statement, he had no idea of what was to come. A road more difficult and sometimes treacherous than any other that he had traveled during his life. But looking back, he wouldn't have it any other way. After all, he was in love just as he had been back then in that cabin.

* * *

C.J. looked and saw the cabin.

"Well what are you waiting for," Sydney said, catching up.

"We need to be careful," she said, "or we could walk right into the men if they're waiting there for us."

Sydney grimaced.

"I see," she said, "but we need to rest somewhere. And I need to get some shoes. My feet are killing me."

C.J. saw that they were indeed bruised and cut from hiking, but at least they had enough feeling to cause pain and there were no signs of frostbite.

"Look on the bright side, it'd be worse if they were numb," she said, "Then they might have to amputate them."

Sydney looked down at her feet and then up at C.J. horrified. C.J. bit back a smile, not that the situation was funny but it kept the despair and fear in check.

"So we just creep up to the cabin real quietly, right?"

C.J. smiled this time.

"You catch on fast."

So that's what they did, walking carefully, making sure none of their steps betrayed their presence to anyone who might be waiting. C.J. dodged the branches that littered the ground around the cabin and slouched down when she approached one of the windows before peeking inside.

"So what's the verdict," Sydney asked impatiently.

C.J. turned around to look at her.

"It looks quiet," she said, "Still, it's hard to know for sure."

"Unless we look for ourselves," Sydney said, "Why did I know you're going to say that?"

"We'll do it carefully," C.J. said, "and let's be ready for anything, okay?"

Sydney nodded as they both crept to the front door of the cabin.


	47. Chapter 47

Chapter 47--Here's the latest chapter of this FF. Hope you like it, thanks for reading and thanks for the feedback!

* * *

C.J. turned the door handle slowly, cautiously almost expecting to be looking up in to Nick's angry face as soon as it was open.

"Do you think they're in there," Sydney whispered.

"God I hope not," C.J. said, her hand still on the door. Each millimeter she turned it, her ears listened but all she heard was the squeak of a doorknob rarely turned and the thud of her own heart beat. Soon enough, the door cracked open and she peered inside.

Even as the memories pervaded her mind and her senses, she knew the cabin was as empty as it looked and sighed in relief. Nick and his men hadn't come here to hide behind the door, awaiting their arrival so that they could follow through with what they promised to do to the women.

"I think it's safe," Sydney said.

"We've still got to be careful," C.J. warned.

"I just want to put something on my feet," Sydney said, "after I put them up on something for a while."

C.J. relaxed, the tension easing out of her body.

"We can rest for a little bit," she said, "Maybe get something to eat and some warm clothing but then we've got to head back to the ranch because Nick and his men will be coming here soon enough."

Sydney nodded.

"Okay, but the longer we stand out here, the less time we'll have inside."

C.J. found she couldn't argue with that so they both walked inside the darkened cabin. C.J. sucked in her breath as she looked around the familiar living room, where she had once sat with Jed as they hid away from assassins hired by Andre Duval to capture C.J. and take her back to him. She had been so tense and prepared to fight or flee that she had nearly shot Matt with Jed's gun before she recognized the figure approaching in the snow as her lifelong friend.

"You look like you know this place," Sydney observed, quickly settling down on a couch to look at her dirt encrusted feet.

C.J. looked at them critically.

"You need to go to the kitchen and boil some water," she said, "clean them off and then take care of any blisters and cuts so they won't get infected."

"Where's the bathroom," Sydney said, looking at C.J., "Oh…dumb question…I guess it's outside."

"There's an outhouse in back," C.J. said, "I'll go see what's in the kitchen."

C.J. did that and saw some canned goods and packaged rice in the cupboards near the gas stove. She found the generator and turned it on so they'd have electricity. Sydney limped into the kitchen to work on her feet.

"When you're done, there are some socks and shoes in one of the bedroom closets," C.J. said, "I'm going to change into some boots."

"Go ahead," Sydney said, "Then maybe we can get a bite to eat."

She looked at her feet which were swollen beneath the dirt and hobbled over to pour some water in a sauce pan to boil. While she waited for it to heat up, she took a towel and some cooler water and tried to clean them as thoroughly as she could, quickly turning the water in a basin a darker color.

C.J. returned wearing some hunting boots and carrying a first aid kit.

"We used most of the bandages to patch up Jed's gunshot wound but there's something left," she said, "and some Neosporin."

"Thanks," Sydney said, placing the kit beside her, "I don't think they're that bad. Of course, it's all relative if we have a lot of hiking left to do to get to the ranch."

"We have to go down a few miles just to get to the meadow which adjoins the lake," C.J. said, "I've done this on horseback many times but not on foot."

Sydney shrugged.

"How hard can it be?"

"I'm not the one with sore feet," C.J. said, smiling.

She went to take the boiling water off of the stove and poured it in another basin, mixing it with cooler water. Sydney plunged her sore feet inside it, gratefully.

"This place holds a lot of memories for you, doesn't it?"

C.J. looked away before nodding.

"I didn't think we would make it alive out of here," she said, "Andre only sent the very best hired hit men to do his work."

"He really was interested in getting you back?"

C.J. wrapped her arms around her chest.

"Yeah, you could say that," she said, simply.

Sydney frowned.

"Look I'm sorry, I didn't want to bring back bad memories. It's just that for someone who's experienced so much horror in her life, you don't seem to wear it."

C.J. smiled wistfully.

"You see me as I am now," she said, "I was much different for a very long time. I thought I would die at first and then I wished I would after everything that man did to me."

"It's over now," Sydney said, gently, "and you moved on."

"A lot of that was because I had friends who really cared about me and did everything they could to help me get my life back," C.J. said, "or at least a brand new one that I cherish just as much as I did my past."

"Friends like Matt?"

C.J. nodded.

"Most especially him," she said, "I ran into him outside this cabin. He had come up to find me and Jed but I thought at first he was one of Andre's men."

"How long had it been since you'd seen him?"

"The longest six months of my life."

* * *

Matt led Jed and Joe down the trail where they saw traces of an old campfire. He placed his hand on his gun, ready to draw it as necessary. He noticed that the other two men did likewise as they approached the small clearing.

Jed knelt beside it.

"It looks pretty fresh," he said.

Matt saw a flash of movement.

"Look out," he yelled.

Jed looked up to see two men approach quickly from behind some bushes that sat at the base of a small grove of trees. He stood up and turned around pulling his gun out just as Matt and Joe drew their weapons. The two men who had tried to ambush them suddenly found themselves on the wrong side of the guns.

"You can't do this," one of them protested, "What gives you the right?"

Matt pointed one of them out to Jed and Joe.

"I know this guy," he said, "I've seen him with Nick a couple of times."

The two men looked at each other.

"Who's this Nick guy?"

Matt sighed and pressed his finger on the trigger, his aim never wavering. The men's eyes widened.

"I think he's serious Ted."

Ted scoffed.

"He's bluffing Darryl," he said, "You can't shoot us and you won't because Sheriff Daniels will lock you all up in a cell until they hang you."

Matt kept his gun aimed on both of them.

"I don't think that's going to happen," he said, "You see, your sheriff Daniels is probably being interrogated by some feds who work with Jonathan, you know the guy who's getting married and they're probably getting enough out of him to get a judge to sign arrest warrants for all of you including Nick by the end of today."

If Ted was worried, he tried to hide it.

"He's full of crap," he said, "Don't tell him anything."

"I'm looking for C.J. and Sydney," Matt said, "You know anything about their current whereabouts."

"What if we did," Ted challenged.

Matt's eyes darkened.

"Then you might as well just tell us because I'll get it out of you even if I have to kill you," he said.

"Now I know he's bluffing," Ted said.

Darryl looked worried.

"How can you be so sure," he asked, "He looks like he's thinking about blowing us away."

Matt narrowed his eyes.

"I am not kidding," he said, "You have to the count of ten to tell me where those ladies are or where Nick's heading and I'm starting the countdown now."

"You can't threaten us with squat," Ted leered.

"One…Two…Three…"

Jed gave the two men a slight shrug.

"I think he's serious," he said, "You best think about talking to him because I don't think I can control him when he finishes counting."

Darryl swallowed noisily.

Matt continued.

"Four…Five…Six."

Darryl looked frantically at Ted.

"You're going to get us both killed," he said, "And Nick just left us here to take the heat…"

"Darryl, shut up."

"I'm not going to if I can save my own skin," Darryl protested.

"Boys, you're running out of numbers here," Matt said, "Seven…eight…"

Darryl raised his hands.

"Stop it," he said, "I'll tell you whatever you need to know."

Ted sighed.

"He wasn't going to shoot you," he said, throwing his hat on the ground.

Matt turned towards Darryl, still aiming his gun.

"Okay, you best start talking or I'll start shooting," he said, "starting with your feet and I'll work my way up."

Darryl started talking almost too quickly to make any sense.

"Slow down…," Matt ordered and the other man tried to comply.

"Nick kidnapped them and loaded them onto this truck," Darryl said, "because they saw Nick shoot an employee who betrayed him."

Matt gestured with the gun.

"Continue talking…"

Darryl did after taking a deep breath and releasing it. Ted just kept shaking his head at him.

"But they jumped out of the truck near the fire road and headed up the mountain," Darryl said, "No one's seen them since."

"But Nick and the rest of his men are out looking for them…"

Darryl nodded.

"He's probably not that far behind them," he said, "He will catch up to them and if he does, they're as good as dead."

"Not if we get to them first," Matt said, "or to him and he'd better hope we find the women safe before we find him."

"Nick's gone crazy," Darryl said, "He's lost it if he's started killing people."

Matt shook his head.

"He's been killing people for a while," he said, "Maybe not personally but he's hired people to do it, people who tried to block other projects that he and Kilroy had been working on."

"A guy's got to make a living," Ted said, "You can't blame him for taking care of what's his."

Matt stepped closer to Ted, who despite his earlier bravado backed up.

"You see, that's where I have the problem," he said, "One of them anyway and that's because his so-called development projects which were supposed to bring mega dollars to these cash-strapped small towns were all scams."

"Nick and Kilroy just wanted the mineral rights," Darryl said, "Whatever it takes to get their hands on them, that's what they'll do."

"And now, they're trying to kill two innocent women," Matt said, "But they're the ones who are going to go down when I get finished with them."

He put his weapon away and gestured to Jed and Joe.

"We're finished here," he said, "We best get moving up this mountain."

As they began walking, Ted lunged towards Matt. As he approached, Matt turned around and slugged him in the jaw with his balled fist, knocking the man to the ground. Darryl's eyes widened and he took off sprinting through the forest.

Matt looked down at Ted shaking his head.

"Some guys just never learn," he said, stepping over his prone body to continue down the trail.

The other two men followed in his tracks.

* * *

Sydney had finished washing her feet and treating the blisters. Afterward, she gingerly pulled some socks over her feet and carefully put on her hiking boots but not without doing a great deal of wincing. C.J. looked over at her, feeling sympathy but knowing that if they wanted to stay one step ahead of Nick, then they had to make better time when they left the cabin than when they had reaching it.

She walked to the stove and checked the rice, which looked nearly done. She planned to mix it with some canned chicken and some vegetable soup. She felt famished after nearly 24 hours without eating and she knew that both of them needed the energy that food would provide to make it down the steep mountain trail. She thought back to the months that she and Matt had spent fleeing both Andre's men and law enforcement agencies which had put a arrest warrant out on Matt for kidnapping and obstructing an investigation, rendering them both fugitives. They had both eaten their fair share of meals tossed together by the creative mixing of canned goods and other ingredients. Matt had brought a lifetime of developing culinary skills to their travels and she had brought some simple recipes and no matter what, they had always been able to come up with something if not delicious, at least both edible and nourishing.

She smelled the rice dish as she took the pan off the stove and began pouring the soup over it and mixing in the chicken. She had found some canned sodas in the cupboard as well and tossed Sydney some cola.

Sydney livened up when she saw the food.

"It smells pretty good," she offered, "and I'm starving."

"Me too," C.J. said, handing her a plate.

They both ate in silence for a while. Then Sydney looked up.

"They're out looking for us aren't they," she said, "Matt and Jed and the other men?"

C.J. looked at her and nodded.

"I'm sure they are," she said, "and they won't stop until they find us."

"What if Nick finds us first?"

C.J. wouldn't even consider that but knew that they needed to be prepared just in case.

"I couldn't find any guns," she said, "but there's all kinds of knives."

Sydney flashed a look of doubt in her eyes.

"I don't know if I can…"

C.J. just stared at her.

"Yes you can," she said, "When it comes down to your life and your death and someone trying to take one away from you, you'll be amazed at what you are capable of doing."

"I've never had to defend my life," Sydney admitted, "I've had it easy."

"Nick finds us, he will kill us, probably not right away and he'll make it so we wish he would."

Sydney shivered.

"Can't he just let us go and forget about it?"

C.J. shook his head.

"We're witnesses to a murder he did and he can't let us live," she said.

Sydney closed her eyes.

"Why did you have to remind me of that?"

C.J. took their dishes when they finished eating.

"We'd best get ready to leave in a few minutes," she said.

"Can't we stay here a little longer?"

C.J. walked over to the sink.

"This place has been a great hiding place in a pinch, but if we stay here a moment too long, it will be a trap."

Sydney nodded.

"Okay, just let me find a jacket to wear," she said, "Preferably one that matches my new boots."

C.J. watched her go and went to get some knives to put in a backpack she had discovered in the corner of one of the bedrooms. She added a couple of canteens of water and some matches in case they couldn't make it to the ranch and had to spend another night in the mountains. She hoped that they would make it down to the ranch before nightfall and be able to summon help. Still, she knew that even now, Nick and his men were combing the mountain range looking for them. She could feel them coming towards her and Sydney even if she couldn't see or hear them. That sense felt her body with a sense of urgency and she walked into the living room to tell Sydney to hurry up.

But Sydney had stood there wrapped up in a jacket ready to go.

* * *

Matt and the other two men continued up the trail.

"You're heading towards the cabin," Jed said, simply.

Matt nodded.

"It's close enough to where they probably jumped out of the truck," he said, "Maybe a day's hike away if Darryl told the truth and they were close to the fire road."

Joe looked up.

"The hunting cabin right," he asked, "I've been up there myself when we've cleared brush off of the trails."

"There's probably some food and shelter to keep them safe for at least a little while," Matt said, "Jed and I were holed up there with C.J. overnight and those hit men didn't find us."

"Nick might know that it's there," Jed cautioned, "and if he does, he's on his way there if he hasn't reached it already."

"We'd better hurry," Matt said, "The terrain's not too bad. We should make it to the cabin in about an hour."

Jed frowned.

"We'd better hope for the best but be prepared for what we might find there," he said.

Joe patted his gun.

"I'm ready to take them on if they hurt Sydney," he said.

Matt knew how the guy felt but they had to exercise great caution.

"When we get close, we have to sneak up right to where we can do some surveillance," he said.

Jed nodded.

"We should know who's there if anyone quickly enough."

As they continued walking, Matt's thoughts kept drifting to C.J. hoping that she was all right. He realized that she and Sydney had already spent a night somewhere on the mountains and if they hadn't been able to find shelter, that meant a night waiting out in the cold. He thought back to yesterday morning when he had woken up to find C.J. gone after she had spent the entire night with him in his hospital bed, wrapping him in her arms. He hadn't had an opportunity to tell her that morning how much he loved her, a situation he planned to remedy when he found her. First he would tell her and then when they had time alone, he would show her. It had taken most of his life to find her even considering that they had known each other for most of that life and he had no intention of doing anything but making up for that lost time. When he found her.

Not _if_, but when because he refused to accept any other outcome. Jed looked over at him.

"Matt, we're going to find her," he said, "and everything's going to be fine."

"We might have to kill Nick to make that happen," Matt said, "and I'm more than ready to do that at this point."

"Matt, we'll have to let the law have a crack at him first," he said.

Matt turned around to look at the former big city police officer who had lost the woman he loved more than life because he refused to turn a blind eye to corruption in his department's ranks.

"Sometimes the law's not always around," he said, "and sometimes it's not enough."

"Jonathan will be sending his guys out here to get Nick and his band," Jed said, "We've got to focus on the women."

"I will be," Matt said, "but I'm not letting anyone stand in my way or stop me from C.J. when we find her."

Jed knew that Matt was deadly serious and hoped that it wouldn't come to that. He and C.J. had already seen enough violence in the past year or so to last a lifetime. It was past time for them to find some peace.

* * *

C.J. and Sydney left the cabin without looking back and started heading down the steep rocky trail. It took Sydney some time to get used to her new footwear.

"It just doesn't feel right with low heels," she complained.

C.J. stifled a laugh.

"You wouldn't have a prayer of making it down here in anything but boots," she said, "and watch where you're going. You take a wrong turn here and you're likely to walk off a 200 foot cliff."

Sydney blanched especially when she saw that C.J. wasn't kidding.

"How long is this going to take," she asked, not really caring to hear the answer.

C.J. did some calculating.

"About two hours," she said, "Maybe two and a half, if we don't hurry up."

"I'm hurrying…"

"We're going to make it," C.J. said, determination in her voice.

Sydney gritted her teeth but tried to smile anyway.

"So what are you going to do when we're safe anyway?"

C.J. didn't need any time to come up with an answer.

"Tell someone how much I love him," she said, "mostly in private."

Sydney's interest peaked.

"That sounds really good," she said, "You're lucky to have someone you feel that way about."

"You are damned lucky to have someone who feels that way about you," C.J. countered, "despite the way you've been treating him."

Sydney groaned.

"Don't bring up Joe again," she said, "I told you that…"

C.J. didn't appear to hear her. Sydney saw that she had stopped walking and stood absolutely still.

"What…"

C.J. put her finger on her lips.

"I heard something," she said.

Sydney's senses became heightened.

"Like what?"

"Branches crackling," C.J. said.

"Maybe it's an animal," Sydney said, "Hopefully not a bear."

Suddenly C.J. looked up and her eyes widened. Sydney followed her glance and saw them standing on the trail blocking their way.

"Somehow I think we'd have better luck with the bear…"

Both women stood still as Nick and two other men approached them.


	48. Chapter 48

Chapter 48---Here's the latest chapter of this FF story. I hope you like it and thanks for reading and for the comments!

* * *

* * *

C.J. and Sydney looked up at Nick and his men, standing on the trail between them and the freedom. The two men drew their guns and aimed them at the women, while Nick stepped forward.

"Nice to finally catch up with you," he said, smiling, "I hope you didn't think you'd seen the last of us."

C.J. looked up at him, trying to remain calm.

"I'd hoped we had," she said, "I think you should have hoped so too."

Nick approached her.

"Why would you say such a thing," he said, "When we've been searching hard all over this mountain to find you?"

Sydney's eyes widened.

"So you're going to kill us now?"

Nick laughed.

"There's no reason we can't spend a little time together first."

C.J. and Sydney looked at each other.

"I don't think so," C.J. said.

He moved closer to them.

"We'll just see about that."

* * *

Matt and the other two men climbed over the ridge and saw the cabin ahead.

"We're almost there," Matt said.

"Just have to get down there," Jed said, "Shouldn't take too long."

"We've got to be careful when we approach," Matt said, "We don't know what's going on down there."

Joe nodded.

"Nick and his men got a big head start on us," he said.

"We'd better get moving then," Matt said, starting down the steep ridge.

The other men trailed behind him as they made their way through the dense brush. When they reached the bottom, they walked across the meadow. As they approached the cabin, they drew their weapons. Matt and Jed nodded at each other and moved to opposite sides of the front of the cabin.

"You come with me," Matt said to Joe, "Jed will go around back."

Joe nodded and followed Matt to the windows. Matt walked up carefully and quietly and looked inside the window, seeing the empty living room.

"I don't think anyone's inside there," Joe said, "Maybe C.J. and Sydney came and left."

Jed came from the back.

"There's no one that I can see," he said.

Matt nodded and they walked to the front door. Jed tried it and noticed it was unlocked.

"Someone's been here," he said then opened the door slowly.

The three men entered the empty cabin and looked around the room. Joe pointed to a pair of shoes on the floor.

Matt looked at them.

"Those are C.J.'s," he said, "The women must have just been here."

"And left," Jed said, walking into the kitchen, "There's some dishes here."

Matt picked up a glass.

"Maybe they're not far away," he said.

Joe brought over a box.

"Someone got into the first aid kit and took some bandages."

Matt paced the kitchen.

"Where do you think they'd be headed?"

Jed paused.

"On foot, probably back down the trail to one of the ranches," he said, "It's a bit of a hike but they could make it in a couple of hours."

"If they don't' run into Nick and his men," Matt said, "Come on, we'd better get moving."

They left the cabin.

* * *

C.J. backed away from Nick as he approached her. She kept her backpack behind her. Sydney saw what she was doing and smiled at the men.

"It's really a surprise to see you up here," she said, "You know since I'm a respected reporter, wouldn't you rather be interviewed by me for the newspaper than kill us?"

C.J. watched them as she reached into the backpack for a weapon.

"I can promise you front page coverage," Sydney said, "I'm sure my editor will approve it once I explain the circumstances."

"What the hell are you talking about," Nick said, "You both saw me kill that guy back there. Sorry doll, I can't let you walk out of here."

She shook her head at him.

"Why did you do it," Sydney asked.

"Why do you want to know," Nick said, "You're going to die anyway."

She shrugged.

"I'm sorry, I'm curious," Sydney said, "It's just the reporter in me."

Nick pointed at C.J.

"You can blame that lawyer bitch over there," he said, "We had a perfect development project running smoothly until she and the other bleeding hearts came along."

"The ones you sent to the hospital," C.J. said, "It's going to be months before Jason walks again."

Nick shrugged.

"Nothing personal," he said, "That was just business."

"Like sabotaging Houston's plane and running our car off the road was just a day's work," C.J. said, "You and your men have been very busy but then that's been a pattern with you in different small towns like Silver Lode."

"No one's chased us away," Nick said, "Until you came along."

"It wasn't my doing," C.J. said, "The ranchers didn't want you here. Only the politicians deep inside your pockets did."

"They were after the money," Nick said, "They didn't care at what cost."

"Did that include murder," C.J. said, "Now greedy I can see but people like Mayor Parker and Sheriff Daniels don't seem like the murdering type."

"Looks can be deceiving."

"I don't think even your partner Kilroy would stoop to killing people," C.J. said, "But he probably wouldn't tell on you if you handled it for him."

"He gives me a job to do that he doesn't want to handle," Nick said, "and then he looks the other way."

C.J. sighed.

"How many people have you killed Nick," she said, "to conduct your business?"

He grabbed her by her jacket and she could feel his breath in her face.

"Stop with the questions," he said, "and get ready to die."

She looked up at him, her jaw set.

"We're not going to die," she said, "So give it a rest."

He pushed her on the ground and she landed on her backpack.

"Shut up both of you," Nick said, and then gestured to his men, "Grab them and we'll take them back to that cabin."

One of the men grabbed C.J. dragging her to her feet and the other grabbed Sydney who tried to kick the man in the legs.

"Don't do that," the man warned pressing the gun in her side.

Sydney just glared at him. If the situation weren't so dire, C.J. almost would have smiled at that.

They started walking back with C.J.'s mind working a mile a minute, trying to figure out a plan. There was no way in hell she was going to let Nick and his men drag them back to the cabin but what could she do? All he had to do was backtrack the distance they had walked down and they'd be back there and once they were inside it, she knew they wouldn't ever leave it alive.

She thought of everything she had to lose, the life that she had fought so hard to build for herself after it had nearly been taken from her, the man she had known most of her life even as she spent it looking for him… Her heart ached into her throat just thinking about it. No way was she going to give an inch to this thug without a fight. If someone were going to die today, it wasn't going to be her.

She looked over at Sydney who just looked frightened. The men continued to force them to walk quickly up the steep, winding trail. The breeze blew softly around them and the sun shone brightly overhead. The songs of birds filled the trees and in the distance, water burbled through rocks as it made its way downstream, etching its path in the ground.

A day too beautiful to be the last one.

* * *

He entered into the room and watched her in the center of the room sparring with a man larger than herself on top of padding lain out on the floor. She dodged his attempts to knock her off balance and threw a couple punches that hit their mark. Sweat beaded her face, soaked through the back of her shirt and her eyes remained focused on her target. The man swung at her and she deftly blocked it with her forearm. She grabbed him and using her body weight swung him off his feet and onto the mat. For a split second, he thought she would jump on top of him and hit him some more. In the beginning of her training, she hadn't known the difference between fighting for her life and practicing for that fight. Mentally, she could separate the two but her body didn't even try. It took weeks and then months for her to bring her mental and physical states into alignment. Although the tension in her muscles told him that it remained a struggle.

She looked at the man lying on the ground then reached down and helped him back on his feet. He smiled and then slapped her on the back before walking to get some water. Matt saw her look up at him and walk over to him.

"I wouldn't want to be caught in a blind alley with you," he said, as she embraced him.

Her sweat intermingled with that shampoo she used that mixed flowers with sandalwood and he closed his eyes just taking her in, wrapping his arms around her.

Finally she broke from their embrace and looked at him, stroking his hair.

"Houston," she said, "When did you get in?"

"I just came from the airport," he said, "I couldn't get a flight so I took the jet."

They walked off the mat with their arms around each other's shoulder.

"I heard that you and that new guy…Brody broke your case wide open," she said.

He nodded.

"He's working out really well," Matt said, "He's a bit eccentric but Hoyt only recommends the best people he's worked with."

"That's great," she said, "I'm glad the agency's doing so well."

He hesitated.

"It's not the same without my partner," he said, "I know you've got a life here now but I miss you."

She looked at him.

"I never did this to shut you out," she said, "It's just something I need to do to find my way."

"I know that," he said, "It looks like that's what you've done."

She looked back at the mat.

"Oh that's just so no one ever gets the jump on me again," she said, "I never want anyone to think I'm an easy target."

The look of vulnerability in her eyes at that moment didn't last long, just enough to cause his throat to catch. She smiled to cover it up and he reached to brush the hair off of her face.

"Remind me not to cross you," he said, "I think you're more than most people could handle."

She laughed.

"Come on, I think someone owes me some lunch."

* * *

It hit her when Nick's man dragged her up the trail that her fate as always lay in her own hands. When opportunities arose, she decided what to do with them. She glanced over at Sydney who despite her eyes being filled with fear, nodded briefly. Nick walked ahead of the men searching for the cabin.

They waited until they hit a bend in the road and then they both started pulling away from the men at the same time. The men startled tried to resist but both women suddenly dropped on the ground and started using their feet to kick at them. The man holding Sydney fell after she kicked the side of his knee and dropped his gun. The man holding C.J. tried to grab it before the women could but C.J. pushed her foot up to tangle with one of his legs and pulled him down. Nick heard the commotion and came running back towards them,

C.J. hit the man in his sternum and he fell backwards and she straddled him. When he tried to hit her with one hand, she grabbed it and forced it into a wrist lock. The man's eyes widened.

"You move and I'm going to break it," she said, "and I'll tell you, it will hurt."

Emboldened Sydney broke away from the man who held onto her and tried to scramble on her feet. The man grabbed her foot and tried to pull her back to him but she kicked him back and after C.J. felt the man's struggles against her lessen, she jumped away, reached down for a rock and struck the man who held onto Sydney's foot across the back of the head. He collapsed with a thud, out cold.

Sydney looked at the unconscious man, too dazed to react.

"Run," C.J. yelled, as Nick grabbed her by the arm.

Sydney got up and started running. The other man found his gun and drew it in her direction.

"Shoot her," Nick yelled.

Sydney kept running and heard the gunshots whizzing past her. She prayed that none of them would hit her as she tried to pick up her speed running up the trail.

"There's nowhere for her to go," Nick said.

* * *

Matt looked up.

"Those are gunshots," he said, "Not too far away."

Jed nodded and the three men picked up their pace trying to focus on which direction the shots had come from.

"Go this way," Jed directed them as they picked their way down the rocky trail.

Matt started running, trying not to lose his footing but he knew he had to hurry if the women were going to have any chance of surviving. Nick and his men must have found them after they left the cabin and the women obviously had decided not to go quietly to their deaths. He had to struggle to keep from surrendering to visions that he had of them getting killed especially C.J.

"We've got to hurry," he said.

He took a bad step and started sliding but picked himself up and kept running.

* * *

C.J. saw the back of Sydney until the woman disappeared behind the bend then quietly gave thanks that the other woman had escaped for at least a little while. If she were lucky, she might encounter anyone out looking for them. C.J. refused to believe that either would lose their life to Nick and his thugs. She pulled harder against Nick and kicked outward to keep the other man from grabbing her.

"Stop struggling," Nick said, "It's not going to save you."

His words made her fight even harder. She managed to knock the other man on the ground and then she twisted hard to try to free herself from Nick's grip. But each time she tried to pull away, he grabbed her harder, trying to pull her closer to him. His breath stank of alcohol and she felt her stomach heave but she kept pulling. They fell on the ground and he tried to reach for his belt to pull out his gun. She felt her head hit the ground and the rocks digging into her back. Reaching around blindly, she tried to find something to hit him with so she could break away.

Finally, her fingers grabbed onto a rock and she lifted it hitting him on the face. He let her go and he grabbed his head, getting blood on his hands. She pushed him off of her and sprung to her feet and kept on running, narrowly avoiding the grasp of the other man.

* * *

Matt and the other men hurried down the trail, crossing a small stream which splashed water on their legs. The foliage whipped them in the face at some places until it thinned out. Suddenly, they heard the sound of something running. They looked at each other. Was it an animal?

"It might be a bear," Joe guessed.

"I don't think so," Matt said.

A woman dashed out of the underbrush which shocked them for a moment until they realized they were looking at Sydney. A very disheveled Sydney who looked terrified. She ran right into a startled Joe's arms. He recovered quickly and pulled her closely for a moment.

"It's okay Sydney," he said, "We're here."

She pulled away from him and looked at them.

"We ran into Nick and his men on the trail," she said.

Matt felt fear creep into his heart as he looked around.

"Where's C.J.," he asked, "Is she okay?"

Sydney looked back from where she came.

"She told me to run," she said, still breathing hard, "but I think she's still back there with the men."

Matt grabbed her shoulders.

"How many are there?"

"Three including Nick," she said, "and they all have guns. They tried to shoot me but I kept running."

"We heard the shots," Matt said, "We were trying to find where they came from."

"That way," Sydney pointed, "It's not too far but you have to hurry."

Matt didn't need to be told that as he already started heading back down the trail with the other three of them trying to keep up. But not before Joe tried to tell Sydney to stay put and out of danger. She wasn't going to have none of that.

"You might need my help," she said, "There's three men and they're all crazy."

* * *

C.J. ran into the brush, not sure which direction she had headed. She had grabbed the opportunity and just tried to get away. The bushes were thick and she had to push her way through them, knowing that Nick and at least one of his friends were on her trail. As she kept running, the birds flew up around her and she heard animals scurry out of her way. She tried to listen for sounds of footsteps or voices behind her, branches breaking but the pounding of her heart filled her ears. On another day not too long ago, she had ran through a different wilderness like she did now. Not sure where she had been heading but trying to put as much distance between herself and the place she had escaped. Like then, even as fear filled her body down into its marrow, she had felt a part of herself become strangely detached as she had focused on escape.

She had worn out her escape route in her dreams for most of the first year since she had become the only person to escape from the compound of one of the world's most notorious human traffickers. The thug chasing after her now was far from being in the same league as an Andre Duval and she had spent the past year working hard to prepare her body by making it stronger and her mind by making it tougher to help her keep her fears at bay.

"So you're going to keep learning how to fight and how to run for how long," he asked her.

She had looked up at him from the weight machine, irritated in part because she knew what Matt was getting at.

She rubbed her fingers on one hand with the other, studying the calluses on them.

"As long as it takes," she said, getting up and reaching for her towel.

He saw in her something he had recognized because he had traveled down the same arduous and painful road as she did now when he had been abducted and brainwashed by a man who worked for old enemies of his family. It had hardened him and only she had been able to soften the edges enough for him to feel human. What he wanted now was to do the same for her, only she hadn't made it easy for him.

She looked at him warily now.

"What, you're thinking that it's wrong what I'm doing?"

He shook his head.

"I'm thinking how much I understand it," he said, "I just don't want to see you hurt as much as I did."

She softened.

"I'm just trying to find out who I am," she said, "I don't know anymore. It's like something fundamental has been taken away from me and I'm not getting it back."

"C.J., you're the same woman you've always been," she said.

That made her angry, from a place inside her she hadn't known existed until she had crossed paths with a man named Andre Duval.

"I'm not her," she said, "So I need you to stop looking at me like I am, and talking to me like she'll respond. She's dead Houston and she's not coming back."

She sank on the bench and put her hands over her face. He felt badly knowing that he had made her cry without meaning to do so. Feeling lost, he almost turned his back for a moment but found himself kneeling beside her.

"C.J., I'm sorry I didn't mean it," he said, "Maybe you're not the same, but you're still the person who's more important to me than anyone."

She glanced up at him, trying to smile.

"I still feel like her sometimes," she said, "I was hoping that by doing all this training, she would come back but…"

"You're a very beautiful, intelligent, warm-hearted and very brave young woman," he said, softly, "That's what I see."

His words silenced her and she just stood up and embraced him tightly.

"Thank you," she said into his neck.

* * *

She kept moving harder, and for the first time she did hear the loud crackling of branches from some distance behind her and at least one voice. Her heart beat quickened and she drew shorter breaths, her muscles burned but she kept going until she saw a clearing ahead. Her heart fell because she knew that beyond it, lay the end of the road, a 200 foot drop off to the river below. She turned to the left and dove under a thick brush as she heard the noises and human voices get closer.

* * *

Matt reached the bottom of the trail and wasn't sure which way to go. Sydney followed with the other two men.

"This way," she said, pointing to the left.

They kept running, the footing still tripping them up. Matt sighed, thinking that the foothills of the Rockies weren't the best place for a foot pursuit. Still, he and the other men had been raised in the rugged wilderness which came part and parcel of their rural childhoods.

They kept running down the wider trail until they came to a clearing. They looked around, confused at which direction to head in next when suddenly Matt looked on the ground. He reached down and picked up a golden necklace.

"What is it," Jed asked.

He fingered it gently in his hand.

"It's C.J.," he said, "She's been here."


	49. Chapter 49

Chapter 49--The latest chapter of this story is done! Hope you enjoy reading it and thanks for the comments!

* * *

C.J. hid underneath the brush listening for the footsteps she knew were coming towards her. She flashed back to another time over a year ago when she had been hiding, praying that she wouldn't be found by those looking for her. Listening to the heartbeat in her ears and hoping it wouldn't give her away and trying not to breathe too loudly.

She tried to look through the thick branches covered with leaves to see if Nick or the other men had approached but while she heard voices and branches crackle, she couldn't see anyone. A night flashed before her when she had lain beneath another bush, listening to the roar of a river nearby while she calculated how much time it would take her to reach it. Then it had been dark, but she could see the spotlights cast by flashlights around her.

Now, she didn't hear a river rushing by but heard the noises of small animals roaming around her and a light wind blowing through the trees, rustling the leaves. She also knew she was a different woman now than she had been that night. Back then she had been nearly broken by a month being held captive by an evil man. But since that night, she had rebuilt her life back to where she had found happiness again. She had plenty to fight for against the next person who tried to take it away from her. And a part of her repeated, just let him try.

The crunching twigs grew closer and she sensed that the men were getting closer to where she had been hiding.

* * *

"And so I crawled beneath the brush and hid there, listening for them," she had told the FBI agent who had interviewed her after she had returned from the island. He had looked at her in disbelief.

"They didn't find you?'

She had looked up at him unfazed by his attitude. She felt someone squeeze her hand and looked up at Matt who sat next to her.

"Why don't you listen to what the lady has to say," an irritated Matt had said and not for the first time.

"I made myself as small as I could and they missed me the first time they walked by."

And she had done that but the second guard walking just a step behind the leader had gazed out of the corner of his eye and he must have seen something suspicious because he backtracked and took a closer look at the brush. C.J watched him, willing her breath to slow down. But it hadn't been enough.

"I think she's in here," the guard had said, pointing to the brush.

She knew she couldn't give them time to find her and so she had garnered her energy in her legs and had sprung out of the bush towards them. Startled, they fell on the ground and she climbed over one of them and took off running again. She headed towards where she heard the river, knowing that had been her only chance.

Now, much later she found herself in the same position left to making a similar choice, only she was much stronger. She had the love of a good man, her best friend in the world to help her remain focused on what she needed to do to stay alive.

* * *

Matt looked in every direction to see where the men could have gone. He noticed some movement near a bush and saw a man trying to crawl away. He ran over there and grabbed him, pulling him up.

"That crazy bitch tried to kill me," the man rambled and Matt saw indeed he had been hurt.

"We'll forget that for a moment," Matt said, "Where did she go?"

"I don't know," the man said, "I don't see anyone here. Maybe Nick killed them both."

Matt's breath quickened when he heard that but he knew that C.J. was probably out in the woods somewhere trying to hide from the men. He had to find her before Nick did.

The man started struggling and Matt punched him, knocking him out again.

Sydney looked at him shocked. He just looked at her back.

"I didn't have anything to tie him up with," he said, simply as he pulled out his gun.

Matt turned towards Joe.

"You and Sydney stay here and keep on eye on that guy," Matt instructed, "Jed and I will go find C.J. and the rest of them."

Joe nodded.

Matt and Jed headed into the woods.

"I'll take this area," Matt said, "You look over there."

Jed pulled out his gun and started searching. Matt stood quietly, listening for any indication that C.J. or Nick were nearby. He heard birds singing in the trees and the wind picking up. He looked up and thought it might start raining soon and knew he had to hurry.

* * *

C.J. kept watching and waiting for the men and soon enough, saw a pair of boots walk by her.

"I know you're hiding around here somewhere," Nick said.

She sucked in her breath.

"You might as well come out," he said, "I'll find you soon enough and then I'm going to kill you. It's not that I want to do it. I just don't have a choice."

She lay down on her stomach and reached to pull it out. Then she waited until he moved closer to the brush, knowing that she was going to have to act.

"Come out, come out wherever you are," he said, "You can't hide forever."

She knew he spoke the truth. Looking out again, she saw him inch closer to the brush, perhaps not quite aware that's where she hid. She heard some nearby bushes rustle and figured he probably had searched those closer. She didn't hear anyone else nearby so she assumed he was alone.

His body nudged the brush and she had to fight temptation to grab at him until she was fully ready. Once she took that action, there would be no turning back. It would be a fight possibly to the death and it wasn't going to be hers.

* * *

Matt approached some trees and saw the back of a man peering into some bushes. He bolted the distance from where he stood towards that man and sprung onto his back forcing him to the ground. The man tried to go for a weapon but Matt struck at his arm to thwart him. He straddled the man and grabbed the back of his head, slamming it on the ground. After a few blows, the man collapsed out cold. Matt searched his limp body and discovered the gun, which he took. Now with two men down, Matt knew that only the most dangerous man remained. A man who had killed and had nothing left to lose, ready to take some lives with him. Matt knew he had to make sure that didn't happen but he had to act quickly and find him in the dense woods. He kept moving and searching.

He had searched for missing people through many a forest or even a jungle or two. Each one was different but he knew he had to keep an eye for any signs, broken branches or debris that revealed whether anyone else had passed through. He looked down and saw some boot prints and then knelt down to examine them closer.

* * *

C.J. counted to three silently then lunged forward grabbing his leg trying to bring him down on the ground. In her other hand, she welded a knife. He fell on the ground and looked at her startled, before trying to get the upper hand by throwing his body over hers. She tried to slash at him with the knife and sliced into his lower leg. He gasped but then reached and grabbed her wrist to get her to drop the knife.

"You're going to pay for that," he said and she knew that if she didn't keep fighting that he would make sure she did.

He slammed her in the face, nearly knocking her out but she ducked to the side and got a glancing blow. Still, her eyes watered from the jarring pain and she had to fight to keep hold of the knife before he knocked it out of her hand. He tried to straddle her body and she tried to push him off and then butt him with her head. Grabbing her wrists, he tried to get her to release her hold on the knife but she kept trying to push him off of her with her body. Finally, she felt her fingers grow numb and the knife fall out of hand next to her body. He slammed her head on the ground and then his hands moved towards her neck. She screamed until his hands squeezed her, shutting down her voice.

* * *

Matt lifted his head, struggling to listen to what he thought had been a woman screaming in the forest. He then headed in that direction, trying to push his way through the brush. The branches hit him in his upper body, several almost knocking him down. But he kept pushing as hard as he could trying to reach where he thought the scream came from.

* * *

She stroked his hair and kissed him on the cheek as he slept beside her, the sheet slipping to his waist. He stirred and then looked up at her looking down at him, her dark hair framing her face. Had he ever woken to a more beautiful sight?

"You look so peaceful asleep," she said, "I'm almost sorry I woke you."

He raised a brow.

"I was tired," he said, "I haven't had quite a…workout in a while."

She smiled.

"Neither have I."

He stroked her arm.

"Come here," he said and she did, nestling herself in his strong arms.

"Houston…"

He looked up at her.

"When we go back home, how will it be?"

He studied her face and knew his words meant everything to her.

"How would you like it to be?"

She sighed.

"You're answering my question with a question."

He nodded.

"Then I'll give you my answer," he said, "and that is that I want what we have here, right now."

"I want that too," she said, "I've never been more sure of anything but right now, home means different places for each of us."

He knew that was true. She was heading back to her life in Texas and he was heading back to his stomping grounds in L.A.

"C.J. I know what I want and I know where I want to get it," he said, "and besides, Texas has always been home to me."

She smiled as he wrapped his arms tighter around her and kissed her head. And she knew that he meant every word of it.

* * *

Matt felt his breath coming harder and quicker as he closed in on a clearing where he thought C.J. might be hiding. As he neared an area of thick brush, he heard sounds of an intense struggle. He looked around frantically for her, praying that he had gotten there in time.

* * *

C.J. struggled but found her energy sapping as Nick tightened his grip on her neck and squeezed the breath of her. Her heart thudded and she felt her mind grow fuzzy. She knew she had to fight harder but her body wanted to give up. Her vision began to go grey and she knew if she surrendered to it, she would die. Suddenly Matt's face flashed in front of her and she knew she had to keep struggling against Nick's efforts to kill the witness to his crimes. She felt her hands grasping at her sides for anything to use against him and one of them found the knife.

Nick's face twisted as he tightened his grip and she felt lightheaded. Her sight blurred and then she saw it again. The vision that had flashed before her eyes once before.

* * *

She had been packing up some items in a bag to go with Chris to the park.

"Hurry C.J. the concert will start soon and we need to get good seats," Chris said.

Chris had been dressed in jeans and a tee-shirt and she held the hand of a dark-haired toddler, who had grabbed some cookies out of a bag when she hadn't been looking.

"She just woke up from her nap," C.J. said about the infant girl who rested in a baby hammock against her chest, "She's been pretty laid back today."

Chris laughed.

"She must get that from her dad," she said.

C.J. thought about it and him, counting the hours until his flight came in tonight.

"I guess so," she said, laughing, "We'd better get moving while the kids are quiet."

* * *

C.J. didn't know why the vision had popped into her head much as it had done last year, another time she had been fighting for her life. And she didn't question it, she just acted, bringing up her hand with the knife in its grasp, stabbing Nick in the neck. Blood spurted out of the wound and he let go of her and grabbed his neck in a futile effort to staunch the bleeding.

He was too busy dying to say any final words but he mouthed them, and then he collapsed on top of her, his eyes wide open. She gasped for breath for a moment and then pushed him off of her and his body rolled to the side with a thud. She felt dizziness hit her and then she saw him standing over her.

Matt knelt down beside her.

"C.J. are you okay?"

She looked up at him and saw how worried his face looked and she reached up to stroke it. He grabbed her hand and squeezed it to help her stand up. Her body felt sore but she managed to get up and leaned on him as he wrapped his arms tightly around her. She burrowed her head into his chest and he stroked the back of her hair with one hand. She started crying and as her shoulders shook, he just held her and stroked her hair and whispered comforting words in her ear. He felt her body relax as the adrenalin drained from her system.

"Everything's all right now C.J.," he said, soothing her with his soft voice and gentle touch.

She looked up at him through her tears and knew it was true.

They left Nick lying dead in the forest and walked out together. Matt never letting go of C.J., putting his arm around her shoulder. They ran into Jed and told him what happened. He looked at both of them grimly and told them he would call the state police to come up and process the crime scene. Matt shook his head.

"I don't want C.J. to have to stay here," he said, "She's been through enough."

"The police will want to interview her," Jed said, "but maybe we can get it postponed for a while."

She nodded. Sydney walked up to her, with concern in her eyes.

"Are you okay?"

C.J. looked back and finally nodded slowly.

"I am now," she said.

* * *

The state police showed up at the scene to cart off Nick's body and to arrest and pick up his two accomplices. They had spent the previous several hours tracking the rest of his network and arresting people. Sheriff Daniels and several of his deputies had tailed them almost in protest but the state police officers weren't to be messed with and told Daniels and his men to either shut up or be carted off to jail themselves to be charged with obstructing an investigation. Matt looked at Daniels, shaking his head pretty sure that he might see a prison cell anyway. At the very least, he was sure to lose his reelection bid in the autumn and most likely, Jed would take his place as the new county sheriff.

Right now, Matt just wanted to take C.J. and go back to the ranch. Jed seemed to read his mind.

"I just got off the phone with Thea," he said, "She's already cooking up a nice spread for all of us when we get back."

C.J. nodded, feeling suddenly hungry.

"That'd be nice," she said, "I just want to get out of here."

Matt looked at C.J.

"Maybe you'd better go home to shower and change clothes first."

She looked down and knew he was right.

"Sounds like a plan," she said then smiled as she raised a brow, "As long as I've got company."

Matt's face warmed and he looked at her and she smiled back at him. He pulled her into his arms and kissed her. She closed her eyes as his lips enveloped hers and she pulled him closer. Finally, they broke apart and he stroked her hair back.

"Most definitely Ms Parsons," he said.

Sydney looked at both of them and raised a brow.

"Is there something about you two that you'd like to share," she asked.

C.J. and Matt just looked at her.

"Maybe later," they said, as they wrapped their arms around each other's shoulders and walked off. Away from the others, away from the mountain to just embrace the company of each other.


	50. Chapter 50

Chapter 50---The latest chapter of this FF is up. Thanks for reading and thanks for the comments!

* * *

It took the two of them a while to show up at the late lunch that Thea had cooked at the ranch house. That didn't matter much because everyone there had waited patiently for them and were glad when they finally appeared at the table.

"Glad to finally see you," Rhonda said, as she embraced the two of them.

"We wouldn't miss…is this the rehearsal dinner," C.J. asked.

Rhonda shook her head.

"That's all tomorrow," she said, "Tonight is when the men have their exercise in debauchery called a bachelor party."

C.J. had to laugh at the distaste on her friend's face.

"Listen, you insisted on having a bachelorette party," she said, "What's good for the goose…"

"I know, I know," Rhonda said, "I'm not upset really. I think it's great that Jonathan can have a chance to sow a few of the wild oats that are left."

Butterfly chimed up.

"I'm going to film the entire thing with my camera," she said, excitedly, "and put it up on YouTube."

Chris vetoed that one quickly.

"It's not something a girl your age should be attending," she said, "Or a girl of any age for that matter."

Jonathan shook his head.

"I don't know what the other guys are planning," he said, "but I'm going to do the traditional night's fishing under the stars, along with a six pack of beer of course."

"Sounds great to me," Matt said and the other men nodded.

Rhonda just looked at the other women.

"And they say we're the fairer sex," she sniffed.

Chris buttered a piece of toasted bread.

"Would you rather they hire a stripper like we did for your party so you can sit up all night obsessing about it?"

Rhonda started to protest while everyone else tried to restrain their laughter.

"Speaking of which," C.J. said, "Joe really did an outstanding job today. I don't think the guys could hire anyone who could beat that."

"We wouldn't even try," Jonathan said.

Rhonda rolled her eyes at him.

"I hope Sydney finally appreciates him for the really classy guy that he is underneath those gorgeous good looks of course," Rhonda said.

"I think she is beginning to get a clue," Bonnie said, "I heard on the grapevine that she's inviting him to dinner tonight."

"Wow, that was quick," Rhonda said, "Maybe she's finally coming to her senses. Better late than never."

Matt turned to Jonathan.

"So are the feds going to do some round ups in town soon?"

Jonathan frowned.

"They've already dragging in Nick's business partners and his accomplices in the kidnapping and murder for questioning. But getting enough to bust people like Daniels and Parker is going to be difficult."

"Just as long as it's done," Bonnie said with a sigh, "I had no idea how dirty the politics in our little town had gotten. I guess some of us must have been asleep."

"Most of us," Jed said, "But I think a lot of people are going to be more careful now with who they vote into office."

"Beginning this autumn," Bonnie said, "But if we elect Jed as our new sheriff, we'll be off to a good start."

"You'd have my vote," Matt said, "If I lived here."

Thea smiled at all of them.

"I'm glad that C.J. here safely, that we're all together and that some bad men will be paying for their crimes," she said, "Here's hoping it will be over and done with by the time of the wedding."

Everyone raised their glasses to that one.

* * *

"So you ready for your wedding Rhonda," Chris asked hitting the Rocky Road ice cream pretty hard.

"As ready as I'll ever be," she said, "He's a really great guy under the stuffiness."

C.J. looked at her two friends shaking her head. The three of them were eating ice cream and giving each other facials along with Fran who had flown in earlier with Carlos and the twins who were napping under Thea's watchful eye in the ranch house while their parents both enjoyed a night of fun.

Fran shook her head after hearing about everything that had happened from the others.

"I felt like I missed everything," she said.

"Motherhood's got to make up for that," Chris said.

Fran smiled.

"It's a lot of work, but it's been great," she said, "Besides, you'll be one yourself soon enough."

"Don't I know it," Chris grinned.

"The best news has got to be about you two hooking up," Fran said to C.J., "It's about time."

"They kept us waiting at lunch for quite a while," Rhonda said.

C.J.'s face flushed.

"We were busy…getting ready."

Rhonda rolled her eyes.

"Uh-huh," she said, "Right…"

"So when are you getting married," Fran asked.

C.J. looked up startled.

"What?"

The other three women looked back at her.

"Will we be hearing wedding bells soon," Rhonda said.

"We just got together," C.J. said, "It's a little too soon to be thinking about all that. We still have to get back home and we both live in different cities."

Rhonda put her hands on her hips.

"Well one of you is going to have to think about moving," she said, "and I'm willing to bet he's already called the movers and is getting his things packed up to go to Texas."

C.J. shook her head in bewilderment.

"Maybe I'll be the one moving," she said, "It's just that I've built a new life in Houston but I want him in it."

Rhonda laughed.

"Jonathan and I had a few…discussions about where we're going to wind up," he said, "If he takes one of the government jobs, we'll probably start out in D.C."

Chris' face fell.

"We're going to miss you in Houston," she said, "Of course if Matt comes to live down there, that would be great. He can always work with Dan in his security business."

Rhonda shrugged.

"I don't know where we'll finally end up," she said, "but we could always shoot for Texas. It's a big state, lots of city and federal offices."

C.J. ate her chocolate mint ice cream thoughtfully.

"I was thinking of buying some land outside of Houston," she said, "Building a house and having some horses and dogs."

"And children," Rhonda finished.

C.J. shook her head.

"We're not even married," she said, "but Houston asked to go with me when I looked at real estate."

Rhonda nodded.

"Well there you go," she said, "There definitely is a man who doesn't want you out of his sight."

* * *

The men were fishing from the banks of the lake drinking beer and relaxing beneath the stars.

"Aren't the fish asleep at night," Dan asked.

The rest shook their heads at Dan.

"I've caught plenty at night," Jonathan offered, "but I mostly came down here with my girlfriends."

"Including C.J.," Dan asked.

"That's for her and I to know," Jonathan said, sipping his beer, "and it was years ago when we were both a lot younger. She's with the guy now that she loved all along."

Matt looked up from his fishing pole.

"She did love you."

Jonathan nodded.

"I know that now," he said, "but I felt like I was competing with you all the time and that pushed us apart. We were both really young."

"You were there for here when she really needed you," Matt said, "when I couldn't be."

"So were you," Jonathan said, "and even when we were on opposite sides, I understood that."

Matt nodded.

"As soon as we leave here," he said, "I'm going back to L.A."

The others looked at him as if he'd lost his mind.

"Just to ask a couple of my top investigators if they want to run the agency on the account that I won't be living in L.A.," Matt said.

Dan raised his brows.

"You're moving to Houston?"

Matt sipped his beer.

"That's where my life is now," he said, "and I can start another business out there."

"Like investigating," Dan asked, "You know you're always welcome to join my security firm. We could use a guy with your skills."

"I'll think about it," Matt said, "I'm not sure what I want to do but fewer cases involving men who cheat on their wives who later blackmail them by sending them bouquets of dead flowers would be a good start."

"I would think so," Carlos said, "L.A. is a strange place."

Matt paused.

"It's also a tough place for C.J. to be after what happened," he said, "She doesn't feel comfortable or safe there anymore especially with that one guy running around out there."

Jonathan sighed.

"I'm sure they're doing their best to find out who he is," he said, "but she's not heard from him lately, has she?"

Matt shook his head.

"But it's difficult to live with having to watch your back everywhere you go. That's no way to live a life."

"It's not always going to be like that," Jonathan said.

Matt wondered.

* * *

"I wonder what the men are really doing," Rhonda wondered out loud.

Fran sighed.

"They're fishing in the lake," she said, "What else?"

"I hope they're not out somewhere getting into trouble," Rhonda said, "At least not without their better halves."

"Should we go check on them," Bonnie said, "so you'll feel a little less insecure about your fiancé less than two days before your wedding?"

Rhonda gave Bonnie a piercing look.

"I'm secure and I trust Jonathan," he said, "Now this crowd he's hanging around with, I'm not so sure."

Chris rolled her eyes.

"Dan just got here," she said, "And no self-respecting ex-cop is ever going to give up a chance to drink beer and go fishing."

C.J. remained silent. Rhonda looked over at her.

"So what are you going to add to this conversation?"

C.J. looked up.

"I think I might be moving to L.A."

The other four women looked at her.

"Really," Rhonda asked, "Why?"

C.J. rubbed her hands together.

"Because the man I love lives and works there," she said, "and maybe it's not fair to ask him to give up his business and start all over."

Rhonda sighed.

"But you hate L.A. now," she said, "How will you be happy there?"

C.J. lifted her chin.

"I don't hate it," she said, "I just don't feel like it's the right place anymore but I can't live without him and I don't want to so if that means moving back to L.A., that's where I'll be."

Rhonda shook her head.

"That's love for you," she said, "but I really think he's already planning to head to Texas so there's no reason to start packing up your china yet."

"I don't own any china," C.J. said, "I guess he and I are going to have some more discussions about what to do."

"It's going to work out C.J.," Chris said, "You'll see."

* * *

"So Kilroy's giving up on swindling Silver Lode's city council," Dan asked.

Jed shrugged.

"He'll be sitting in a jail cell soon enough so it won't matter," he said.

Matt swung his pole back and his line back in the dark waters of the lake.

"I wish there was some way we could nail Daniels, Parker and any other con artists to the wall," he said, "They're all as guilty in C.J.'s kidnapping and the injuries suffered by her legal team in my mind."

"I don't disagree with that Matt," Jed said, "but the federal and state people need more evidence of their involvement."

"C.J. had a confidential source from Daniels' department," Matt said, "Maybe she can help us."

"We can try," Jed said, "She'll either be running scared now that Daniels is getting desperate or she might be more willing to talk openly."

"I'm hoping for the former," Matt said, "I'll ask C.J. when I get back to the cabin about it."

"I can put some heat on Mayor Parker tomorrow," Jed said.

Matt nodded but Jonathan put up his hand.

"We can get some of this done tomorrow," Jonathan said, "but Rhonda will kill all of us if we're late to the rehearsal."

"We'll have plenty of time," Jed said.

* * *

Chris finished up her Rocky Road ice cream sighed.

"I've been hitting this stuff really hard," she said, "I think I put a serious dent in Silver Lode's supply."

C.J. laughed.

"It's for a good cause," she said, "Besides, there's plenty of Butter Pecan left since Butterfly's moved in the ranch house."

The mention of the teenager's name got Chris fretting.

"I wonder if I should have let her go to the movies with that boy tonight," she said.

"You mean Carter," C.J. said, "He's a really nice, level-headed young man very mature for his age and she likes him."

"Yeah but they kissed in the barn," Chris said, "When she mentioned it to be so matter of factually the other day, I almost passed out."

C.J. sighed.

"I know about that," she said, "I was there."

Chris' eyes widened.

"What," she said, "Butterfly didn't tell me that part."

C.J.'s cheeks turned pink.

"I wasn't alone," she said, "and not exactly completely dressed."

"Ooooh," Chris said, "That makes sense. Wow, I do have a lot to catch up on."

C.J. furrowed her brow.

"Butterfly's got a good head on her shoulders and is calm in a crisis and there were plenty of those," she said, "I really don't think you have to worry about her."

"Yeah Chris," Rhonda chimed in, "She's growing up. She's not that little girl anymore."

"No she's not," Chris agreed, "and she's been pretty cool about the baby."

Rhonda turned to C.J.

"So when are you going to kick us out?"

"What?"

Rhonda snorted.

"You know so you and your new boyfriend can pick up where you left off this afternoon," she said, "You can text us and tell him we'll be leaving soon and it will be safe to come back."

C.J. shook her head.

"Rhonda…"

Suddenly, they heard a movement outside, bushes rustling, branches snapping. All of them froze.

"What's that," Chris asked.

Rhonda shrugged.

"Probably an animal," she said, "A deer or maybe a bear."

Chris closed her eyes.

"There's bears up here?"

Rhonda nodded.

"And they love to eat people," she said, "Especially this time of year."

C.J. froze and tried to listen.

"I think there's someone by the door," she said.

The other women just looked at her. C.J. got up quietly and opened the cabin door, looking around and seeing no one. Then she looked down and saw it tucked beneath the mat. She reached down and picked the envelope and opened it.

_It's not over yet. _


	51. Chapter 51

51---This is the latest chapter of this FF story. Thanks for reading and for the feedback! I have a new cross-fiction where _Matt Houston_ meets _Northern Exposure_. Two shows that actually go together better than you'd think.

* * *

C.J. snuggled against him as the sunlight shone though their window where they were sleeping. She looked at him, with the sheet down to his bare waist and his leg intertwined with hers. He had come back to the cabin after a night of fishing with the guys and she had been waiting. Taking him into her arms as he trailed her neck with kisses, she had forgotten about the letter she had received on her doorstep. This morning, it came back to her.

Who had dropped it off without her finding out? What did it mean? After all, she had assumed that Nick had been responsible for all the threatening messages she had received and Nick was dead, at her hands.

She felt him stir beside her and saw that his eyes had opened.

"You're awake," she said, with a smile.

"Yeah I guess I am," he said, "What a night."

She raised a brow.

"Do you mean the fishing or what happened after?"

He smiled at her.

"What do you think?"

She kissed him and he drew her closer.

"You never told me if you caught anything," she said.

"Could you be more specific," he said, "So I can give you a more definitive answer."

She chuckled.

"I mean fish," she said, "Will we be having trout for breakfast?"

He sighed.

"Probably not," he said, "The only one who caught any was Dan and he's hardly ever gone fishing."

"Beginner's luck prevails," she said, "Good for him."

"So what's on tap today," he said, propping himself up on his elbow.

"I've got to head to town and meet with my source," she said, "I was hoping you'd go with me."

"Sure thing," he said, "We need to tie up some loose ends on this case."

She nodded.

"I think so too," she said, "As bad as Nick was, he was really only the muscle. People like Kilroy, Parker and Daniels, we need to go after them."

"Then that's what we'll do," he said, getting out of bed.

* * *

Later, they headed onto Silver Lode and parked the car by City Hall. C.J. looked up and saw Sydney walking towards her.

"What are you doing down here," Sydney asked, "Isn't the rehearsal for Jonathan's wedding tonight?"

C.J. nodded.

"We're here to pay a visit to some of the remaining cast of characters in this situation involving the crooked land developers," she said.

"Do you mind if I tag along?"

"Sure," C.J. said, "but you'd better have a strong stomach. Whatever happens isn't going to be feature page material."

Sydney folded her arms.

"After the past couple of days, I think I can handle a little action," she said, "as long as there's no running around in the wilderness and spending nights in caves."

C.J. looked at Matt.

"I think we can promise you that."

Sydney sighed.

"Good," she said, "Although at least I'm wearing flats today."

"I think we'd better drop in on Sheriff Daniels first," Matt said, "if he even showed up for work today."

"Oh he did," Sydney said, looking for her notepad, "He ate breakfast at the diner this morning."

"I would think the feds would be interested in him," Matt said.

Sydney nodded.

"I think they paid him a visit," she said, "but he's not talking."

"Does he have a lawyer yet," C.J. asked.

Sydney shrugged.

"I would imagine so," she said, "So are you two together or something?"

C.J. smiled.

"Let's just say that if I woke up and he were lying in my bed, I wouldn't kick him out."

Sydney's eyes widened.

"So you're the girlfriend," she said, nodding, "That actually makes sense."

"I heard you had dinner last night with Joe," C.J. said.

"That might be true," Sydney said, "We just hung out and caught some of the game on television."

"I bet you had a great time," C.J. said.

Sydney started to say something then nodded.

"That might be true."

They headed towards the small building that housed Daniels' office and walked inside. The woman at the desk frowned when she saw him.

"He's not talking to anyone," she said, seeing Sydney.

Sydney put her hands up.

"Relax, I'm just here as an observer," she said, "This can be totally off the record."

The woman looked uncertain.

"I can check if that's okay," she said, disappearing.

"He's probably sneaking out the back entrance about now," Matt said.

C.J. sighed.

"He's going to have to face the music sooner or later," she said, "If they search Nick's things and find anything tying him to Daniels, he's going to have a lot of explaining to do."

Matt scratched his head.

"You know C.J. for a while I thought Daniels was just incompetent," he said, "I didn't think he was really involved in all this mess."

"I didn't either Houston," she said, "but he's obstructed every investigation that should have been initiated when Nick hurt someone including trying to kill the legal team. I mean, Jason has a long road ahead of him."

"At least he's got Maggie at his side," Matt said.

C.J. nodded.

"That's the one good thing about what happened," she said, "It brought them together."

_That's not the only good thing_, Matt thought to himself.

* * *

They waited a couple more minutes and then looked at each other.

"We'd better check the back," Matt said.

Both of them got up and left the office and walked to the back of the building, with Sydney on their tail.

"What are you doing," she asked.

"Trying to catch Daniels before he leaves," Matt said.

As it turned out, they had just missed them but C.J. saw Tammy sitting at a table nearby, reading a book.

"Houston, I need to go talk to her," C.J. said.

He nodded.

"I'll be right here," he said.

Sydney looked from one to the other.

"What's going on here?"

"As a reporter, you should know about confidential sources," Matt explained, "Lawyers have them too."

"You stay here with Houston," C.J. said, "I'll be back."

She walked on over to talk with Tammy to find out what she had to say.

* * *

C.J. approached Tammy who looked up at her from her book and nodded. She then sat down.

"We were here to try to talk to Sheriff Daniels," C.J. said.

"You won't find him here," Tammy said, "He's hiding out from the feds. He wasn't there when they came looking earlier."

"Why is he doing that," C.J. said, "What is he hiding from?"

Tammy tilted her head.

"He got paid by Kilroy and his men to look the other way," she said, "The rest of him hated him for it. Too many people have been hurt because of what those men did for money."

C.J. nodded.

"I know," she said,

"I heard you killed Nick."

"It was either him or me," C.J. said.

"I understand," Tammy said, "Believe me, no one here is mourn his loss."

"So how do you know that he worked with Kilroy and Nick?"

Tammy paused.

"I heard him a couple times on the phone arguing with them," he said, "I think he was against their decision to target your legal team the way they did. I think he thought Nick's tactics were a little rough."

"Nick had free rein from someone to commit the violence he did," C.J. said.

"It doesn't take much to get him started," Tammy said, "He's always been a bully even before hooking up with Kilroy."

* * *

Matt watched C.J. and Tammy while Sydney shook her head.

"I wonder what they're saying."

"Hopefully, she knows something that will nail Daniels," Matt said.

"You really think he's involved in all this," Sydney asked.

"It would make a lot of sense," Matt said, "All these investigations started and none completed."

"And I thought this was a quiet and unassuming little town," Sydney said.

"Even the little towns have their bad apples," Matt said, "Silver Lode's got mostly good people and when these bad guys are all sitting in jail cells, things will probably go back to normal."

Sydney sighed.

"I never thought I'd be happy here," she said, "but I went out and worked the news in some of the big cities and none of them were all that."

"Living in cities presents its own challenges," Matt said, "Faster pace, more stress, it can wear you out."

She looked at him.

"Is that why you came here," she said, "or was that an excuse to help C.J. without her knowing that?"

He thought about it.

"I think it was both," he said, "I was buried in work but none of it meant very much. I really missed her since she moved to Texas."

"Is she going back there?"

He nodded.

"Everything she needs is there," he said, "Her job, her friends, the professionals who helped her. She's still recovering from what happened to her."

"What about you," Sydney asked, "You're not there with her. What are you going to do?"

He glanced at C.J. to see her still deep in conversation with Tammy.

"I don't know," Matt said, "We have to stop this whole thing before it goes any further."

"But C.J. won in court," Sydney said, "She got the injunction for the ranchers and now with Nick gone, I don't think the others will cause any more problems."

"Maybe so," Matt said, "But there's still the matter of them getting away with it and I'm never going to let that happen."

"Isn't there a wedding tomorrow," Sydney asked.

Matt looked at his watch.

"It will all be wrapped up by then," he said.

* * *

Tammy looked up at C.J. again.

"I hope you can find Daniels before he takes off," she said.

"Do you think that's what he's planning?"

Tammy nodded.

"He doesn't want to go to prison," she said, "No cop does and certainly not the county sheriff."

"He's not going to get away," C.J. said, "We're going to find him."

She thanked Tammy for the information and left her with her book. Matt looked up as she approached.

"So what did she say?"

C.J. took a deep breath.

"That Daniels is in on it and he might be trying to flee the area."

Matt's jaw set with determination.

"Then we'd better stop him."

They took off walking. Sydney followed, perplexed.

"Where are you running off to?"

C.J. looked at her.

"City Hall."

"Why?"

"To go find Mayor Parker."

They reached City Hall and entered the building, heading towards Parker's office. His secretary looked up from her computer.

"He's not in his office today," she said, before they could even ask.

"Where is he," C.J. said, looking around.

"He took a sick day," the secretary said, "You might want to try again tomorrow."

"When did he call in?"

The woman looked at her.

"This morning," she said, "There's something going around. He probably caught it."

Matt and C.J. looked at each other.

"I'll bet," he said.

* * *

They left the office and went outside, running into Bonnie.

"So how did it go," she asked.

"No one's at work today," C.J. said, "Guess it's some kind of furlough program in effect."

Bonnie laughed.

"You both are planning to make it to the rehearsal tonight?"

"We wouldn't miss it," C.J. said, "We're meeting with Jonathan and Jed later to see if we can put a plan in action to nail these guys before they take off."

"I hope you can do that but you're going to have to act fast," Bonnie said, "I heard Sheriff Daniels was in his office this morning and then got a phone call and took off."

"We checked in on him and he was already gone," Matt said.

"He's probably meeting with Parker," C.J. said, "They took Kilroy in for questioning yesterday and no one's seen him since."

Jed walked up to them.

"I just ran into some of the state police," he said, "They're getting a warrant signed by a judge to search Nick's place and his office. His wife's not too happy about that but there's nothing she can do."

"I wonder what they'll find," Matt said, "Hopefully he didn't destroy everything."

"I don't think he had the time," C.J. said, "but his accomplices might have done the job for him."

Matt's phone rang. He saw on the Caller ID that it was Brody.

"Hello Brody, what's up," he asked.

"I heard on the news that there's some action in your corner of Colorado."

"Yeah, we're cleaning up loose ends over here right now," Matt said, "C.J. had to kill Nick in self-defense."

"How's she doing?"

He looked over at her.

"She's doing okay," he said, "He was going to kill her for witnessing him murdering one of his employees."

"Fair enough," Brody said, "So when are you coming back?"

Matt hesitated.

"I'm still working on that," he said, "We're both trying to figure that part out."

Brody paused.

"You're moving to Texas," he said.

"I'm thinking about it," Matt said, "That's where her life is now."

"Then that's where you need to be," Brody said, "Roy and I can handle things fine on this end."

"But…"

"Matt, you won't be happy unless you're where she is," Brody said, "and I don't want to have you around me in a bad mood all the time."

Matt sighed.

"I'll get back to you, after we wrap up things here."

"Look forward to it," Brody said before hanging up.

Matt looked up and saw a group of men in suits approach them.

"What's up," he said.

"We just did a search of Nick's place," one of them said, "We need to talk to you. We found something interesting."


	52. Chapter 52

Chapter 52---Here's the latest chapter from this story. Thanks for reading and thanks for the comments!

* * *

Matt looked up at them.

"So what do you have to show us," he said, folding his arms.

One of the men stepped forward and extended his hand.

"I'm Fred, from the State Police," he said, "and this is Oliver from the FBI office in Denver."

Matt just looked at them for a moment before finally shaking their hands.

"Nice to finally see you come down to these parts," he said, "You missed most of the fun."

The two men looked at each other.

"We've rounded up some of the Nick's accomplices and we're looking into arrest warrants for some other bad guys."

Matt nodded.

"That's a start," he said, "but it would have been better if you had done all this before they tried to kill C.J."

"Matt..."

"I'm serious," he said to her, "I just love it how we have to do all the work and then they jump in at the last minute and tell us everything's fine."  
Fred sighed.

"I'm sorry we weren't more proactive in this case but we didn't have any proof until your friend up in Denver gave us some of those samples from the car that crashed."

"That was days ago," Matt said, "A lot has happened since then."

"We can see that Mr. Houston," Oliver said, "I heard a lot about you."

Matt looked at him wary.

"Not all bad I hope," he said.

"You made a huge impression on Agent Denton," Oliver said.

Matt grimaced.

"Now there's a name."

C.J. turned to the two men.

"What is it that you have to tell us?"

"Oh yes," Oliver said, "We conducted a search warrant of Nick's office and where he stayed there. His wife wasn't too thrilled but a judge signed off on the search."

"What did you find," she said, "It must be something important to want to tell us."

The two men looked at each other again.

"He kept a rather extensive file on everyone in the legal team," Fred said.

C.J. felt a chill run through her.

"What do you mean by that?"

"He must have done some sort of background checks," Fred said, "They were rather lengthy."

Matt frowned.

"Did you find anything that concerned you," he asked.

Oliver hesitated.

"We found something that indicates that he had friends in the FBI or U.S. Attorney's office," he said.

C.J. shook her head.

"How could that be," she said, "Nick was just some hired muscle for Kilroy Developers."

"That's probably true," Oliver said, "but we found evidence in his file on you that never made it outside either of those federal offices."

C.J. was stunned by that news.

"You mean from the trafficking case?"

Both men nodded. Matt looked at the both of them, anger filling him.

"How did that happen," Matt asked, "That information is supposed to be secure. There's still one more prosecution that's not been concluded."

"We know that Mr. Houston," Oliver said, "We've initiated an investigation into both offices to see who leaked the information out ot him."

C.J .ran her hand through her hair.

"Do you want to see your file," Fred asked.

She shook her head, numbly.

"I've got work to do," she said, walking away.

"I'm sorry we had to give you this news," Fred said, "but we felt that you needed to know."

Matt turned towards them.

"Thanks, but like the lady said, we've got work to do."

They both walked away from Fred and Oliver towards Sydney and Bonnie.

"What was that all about," Sydney asked.

C.J. just looked at them, still shocked by the news.

"Nothing," she said, "I've got a case to wrap up."

Sydney brightened.

"So what are you going to do next?"

"We're going to find out where Daniels and Parker hang out when they're not corrupting this town."

"There's a little restaurant in the next town," Sydney said, "You might want to try there."

"What's it called?"

Sydney shrugged.

"I'll tell you if you take me along and give me an exclusive on anything that happens."

C.J. looked at Matt.

"This could get dangerous," she said, "Are you sure this is what you want? Because you weren't really thrilled by our last adventure."

Sydney sighed.

"I'm so over that by now," she said, "and it wasn't all bad. Some of it was exciting."

C.J. almost choked.

"I don't know if I would call it that," she said, "but if you promise to stay in the background, then you can come."

Sydney smiled.

"Do I have time to get Joseph, my photographer?"

C.J. shook her head.

"If you want to go, the car will be pulling out of the lot in a minute."

Sydney hurried with them to the car. Matt pulled out of the parking lot and onto the highway.

"So did the suits tell you anything important," Sydney asked, fishing through her purse.

C.J. just looked out the window.

"They searched Nick's business and home but that's pretty much standard procedure in cases like this one," Matt explained.

"Did they find any damning evidence," Sydney asked, "You know to put Kilroy and the others away for a long time?"

"I think they did," Matt said, "They're just trying to see what they can find out about some of the players they haven't rounded up yet."

Sydney paused.

"You mean like the ones whose party we're about to crash," she said.

* * *

C.J. listened to them talk, but even though she knew it was important to keep focused on the situation they were going into, she found it difficult. The revelation that Nick had information from the criminal prosecutions being done by the Justice Department really threw her. Not that there hadn't been leaks in the federal agencies that hadn't compromised her safety before but this latest news made it clear that her trust in those entrusted to protect her was misplaced.

Matt looked at her and knew that she was reacting to what she had just heard but he couldn't talk to her about it now. And if he tried, she would refuse to answer as she was focused on going after Daniels and Parker so that she could close the book on this chapter of her life, knowing that the ranchers' way of life in the valley had been restored.

Sydney looked up ahead.

"It's the next off ramp," she said, "Copper Meadows, population 200."

Matt prepared to leave the highway.

"Another former mining town," he said.

Sydney nodded.

"It was until it went bust about 20 years ago," she said, "but they've got hot springs to keep the tourists happy."

They drove down the main strip where there were some small stores and a restaurant or two. Sydney pointed out a building at the end of the street.

"There it is," she said.

Matt pulled up short of it and turned off the engine.

"Now let's not make a big fuss when we approach," he said, "You think you can handle that Sydney?"

She rolled her eyes.

"I can handle it if you can."

They walked up to the dusty building with a life-sized Palomino horse in the front.

"Looks lively," Matt said.

"It attracts a bit of a lunch crowd for about 20 minutes," Sydney said.

Matt turned to C.J.

"Are you ready for this?"

She nodded.

"I've been ready," she said.

* * *

The three of them entered the building which had emptied out with only a regular or two sitting in the booths while a waitress poured them water.

"I don't see them here," Matt said.

"That's because there's a special dining room in the back for the VIPs," Sydney explained, "I'll call Ray over and he'll take us there."

Ray turned out to be the part-owner of the place who sat near the kitchen in case they needed him.

"I did a profile on Ray and his restaurant so he…"

Matt put up his hand.

"No need to explain," he said, "You became good friends."

Sydney nodded.

"Something like that," she said.

Ray saw her and walked over.

"What is it that you want Ms Roth," he asked.

Matt thought he saw wariness in the man's eyes. Sydney smiled widely.

"You know you can call me Sydney," she said, "No need to be so formal."

"I've been warned about you…Sydney," he said, "by some of my best customers."

Her smile didn't dim.

"That's why we're here…Ray," she said, "We need to talk with them."

Ray folded his arms.

"No, they left strict orders not to be disturbed," he said, "by anyone."

"But…"

Matt looked around the two of them and crept away from Sydney and Ray. C.J. saw him and nodded.

"Ray," she said, "This is a really nice establishment you have here. Tell me, is the food as good as the atmosphere?"

He smiled at her.

"Would you like to try something?"

* * *

Matt walked slowly down the hallway, his hand on his firearm ready to pull it if necessary. He saw a closed door at the end and figured that was probably where Parker and Daniels were hanging their hats. He gently pushed the door open and stuck part of his body inside the room. Daniels and Parker were eating lunch at a table and at first didn't notice him.

"Excuse me gentlemen…"

Parker looked up suddenly and when he did, so did Daniels. Neither man looked happy to see him.

"What are you doing here," Daniels said, "This is a private dining room."

"Ray the owner is busy elsewhere, so I thought I'd check out his restaurant," Matt said, "It's a pretty nice place."

"One of the best in the area," Parker said, "And it's for the right price although I imagine money's no object for you."

Matt set his jaw.

"I would say the same about the both of you except the law's about to catch up with your behavior."

Parker looked at Daniels and chuckled but Matt noticed Daniels wasn't smiling.

"That's very amusing Mr. Houston," Parker said, "I haven't done anything since I've been elected mayor by the people of Silver Lode except try to improve the standard of living in my town."

"By hiring people to kill and threaten those who get in your way," Matt asked, "You've sent two good people to the hospital and tried to kill two other ladies who tried to stop you."

Parker shook his head.

"I had nothing to do with that sordid behavior," he said, "Nick was a renegade. He acted on his own."

"Not according to what they found in his office," Matt said, still not sure exactly what the authorities had found, "The feds and state police found a lot of evidence connecting Nick's actions to Kilroy Partners and Kilroy's money trail to your office."

Parker's face turned red.

"How dare you throw out such accusations," he said, "If Kilroy hired Nick to kill people, I had nothing to do with it and no knowledge of it."

"I'm not saying that you did," Matt said, "I'm saying that there's been evidence uncovered that strongly indicates you did."

Daniels threw down his napkin.

"He's bluffing," he said, "I've not had a single law enforcement agency tell me that they found anything linking you to any crimes."

"Well that's because you see Daniels, they are investigating your actions," Matt said, "and they've found evidence implicating you in some of these escapades as well."

Matt saw Daniels shift and knew he was reading for his gun. It didn't matter much because Matt was one step ahead of him.

"If I were you, I'd leave that gun of yours in its holster," Matt said, "and just turn yourself into the authorities to save me the time and energy of having to bring you in myself."

Daniels folded his arms.

"You wouldn't dare," he said, "They'd have your head first before they would go after a brother law enforcement officer."

Matt scratched his chin.

"Well that's what I thought too at first," he said, "but ironclad proof of criminal acts has a way of softening that adherence to the blue code."

* * *

Ray brought out plates of taquitos to both Sydney and C.J. steaming hot. Sydney just looked at them after he left.

"Are we supposed to eat this," she asked.

"We're supposed to keep him occupied so that Matt can get the goods on Parker and Daniels."

Sydney sighed, picking up a taquito and taking a bite. Her expression changed as she tasted it.

"These are really good," she said, "You should try it."

C.J. did but she was too nervous to appreciate the cuisine. She wondered if Matt had found the two men and if so, what he was doing.

"I'm sure he knows how to handle himself," Sydney said in between bites.

C.J. played with her fork.

"I know he does," she said, "but it's two against one."

"You must really love him," Sydney said, "I wonder what that feels like."

C.J. looked at her startled.

"It feels great," she said, "I think I've loved him my whole life."

Sydney paused.

"I didn't mean to make things difficult for you with that whole "sexiest millionaire bachelor" deal," she said, "If I had known…"

C.J. shrugged.

"It's all right," she said, "I got a kick out of it and he is the sexiest guy in the world."

Sydney smiled.

"Can I quote you?"

* * *

Matt shook his head at the two men in front of him. Parker looked at Daniels.

"I don't think he's going to go away," he said.

Suddenly Daniels lunged up with his gun drawn. Matt beat him to the punch pulling his own weapon and pointing it at the sheriff.

"What, you're going to shoot a law enforcement officer," Daniels said, "They'll hang you for that."

Matt's aim remained steady.

"Not if I can prove it was self-defense," he said, "After all, you worked very hard to help Nick try to eliminate some folks who were trying to stop Kilroy's master plan."

Daniels didn't drop his gun but tried to grab Matt, who dodged him causing Daniels to collide with the wall. Before Matt could grab him, Daniels started kicking outward, nearly tripping Matt up but he was able to stay just out of reach. While they were struggling, Parker tried to creep out of the room.

"Hold on there," Matt said to him, but he had his hands full with Daniels who was able to pull away and fled the room.

Parker stopped and just looked at him.

"I swear I'm innocent in all this," he said.

Matt pointed his gun.

"You sit right back down in that chair right there and wait until I can deal with you," he said.

Parker didn't argue but sat down, looking unhappy and pulling at his collar. Matt left him and went down the hallway. Daniels had entered the main part of the restaurant and waved his gun at everyone, telling them not to move or he would start shooting. C.J. just rolled her eyes but she stayed still, her mind working a mile a minute to come up with a plan. She looked up and saw Matt approach. So did Sydney but for once, she kept quiet, much to C.J.'s relief.

Daniels stepped backward still waving his gun.

"No one move or I will shoot you," he said, "I'm not surrendering."

Matt and C.J. looked at each other, wondering what to do next.


	53. Chapter 53

Chapter 53---Here's the latest installment of this FF story. I hope you like it and thanks for the comments!

* * *

C.J. and Matt looked at each other quickly before focusing their attention back on Daniels who was waving a gun while standing in the diner. Sydney kept quiet standing in the corner but Ray, the owner just threw down his napkin looking ticked off.

"Oh just give it a rest Daniels," he said, "And give yourself up already. You're hurting my business with all this carrying on."

Daniels pointed the gun at Ray.

"Shut up," he said, "I am not handing myself over to this cowboy when I haven't done anything wrong."

Matt saw that Daniels' hand shook as it held his handgun. The man's nerves were frayed and probably had been for some time.

"If you're so innocent of the crimes that have occurred on your watch," he said, "then why did you run away from the federal and state police when they stopped by your office to question you?"

Daniels stammered.

"I didn't…run away," he said, "I was at the diner eating breakfast just like l always do."

Sydney nodded.

"That's true Matt," she said, "but he took off when he saw me arrive."

Daniels made a face.

"Well Sydney, anyone in their right mind would run away from you," he said, "You're too nosy and pushy for your own good."

"I figured you might be thinking that when your guy tried to kill C.J. and me the other day," she said, "Don't tell me you had nothing to do with that."

Matt nodded.

"He can't tell you that because he knew what Nick and his boys were planning but he didn't tell anyone else about it."

Daniels' gun wavered again.

"That's not true," he said, "I had no idea that Nick had planned to kidnap these two women."

Matt didn't believe him.

"You had already known that he had threatened C.J. numerous times and assaulted her in the diner," he said.

Daniels shook his head.

"That was her word against his and I had no reason not to believe him."

"Now why would that be if you were being an objective officer of the law," Matt said.

"Nick was responsible for the car accident that injured Jason and Maggie," C.J. said, "I don't know if it was his truck that hit us but I know he planned it."

"And who obstructed that investigation like all the others involving Nick and Kilroy," Matt said, "but the county sheriff himself."

Daniels grew more agitated.

"Stop with these accusations or I'll shoot you dead," he said.

"If you kill us Daniels, the law is going to catch up with you," Matt said, "and you know what happens to former law enforcement officers even on death row."

"I don't want anyone shooting anyone in my restaurant," Ray said, "Can't you both take it outside?"

Daniels thrust his gun in Ray's direction again.

"I just told you to shut up," he said, "I'm in control here."

"Not in my restaurant," Ray insisted stubbornly, "Now I have a shotgun in here and I can blow you out the door."

"I'll hit you first," Daniels said, "before you can even reach your gun."

Sydney shook her head.

"I'm here on the story of a lifetime and I don't even have a photographer."

* * *

Rhonda, Fran and Chris got dressed for the wedding rehearsal.

"Where's C.J.," Rhonda said, looking at her watch, "She was going to meet us here to take a final look at the dresses."

Chris shrugged.

"She'll make it on time," she said, "She promised she would and she doesn't break her promises."

Butterfly buzzed in with her video camera filming everything. Fran looked at her.

"Is that thing turned on?"

"It's always on," Butterfly explained, "because you never can tell when something might happen that you might need to film."

"So are you going to film me trying to get into my dress tomorrow?"

Butterfly nodded.

"Of course," she said, "Why should that bother you? You look really pretty, for having had two babies."

Fran smiled.

"Thank you Butterfly," she said, "I've just been having some cellulite moments."

"Whatever," Butterfly said, "I've got to meet Carter. He's going to be helping me film the wedding rehearsal since I'll be in it and can't run the camera."

Chris's eye brows rose.

"It's okay Butterfly but no more wandering off into barns and kissing," she warned.

Butterfly sighed.

"I'm so over that," she said, "Carter's nice and everything but we're going home in a couple of days and these long-distance relationships, they just never work out."

Chris put her hands on her hips.

"And what do you young woman, know about things like that?"

Butterfly fidgeted with her hands and looked down for a moment.

"Because that's why you sent me to this ranch in the boonies in the first place," she said, "To make me break up with Spike?"

Chris sighed and ran her hand through her hair.

"No, I just thought you needed to spend some time away from him," she said, "I know you're not the little girl that we rescued from those bad men several years ago but you've still got a lot of growing up to do."

"I'm out of here," Butterfly said, before picking up her camera again and leaving the other women who just shook their heads after she closed the door behind her.

"Next week, she'll have a crush on some other boy," Chris said, shaking her head, "At least it will be a while before my own kid gets to be her age. Hopefully I'll have everything figured out by then."

Fran smiled.

"So you think," she said, "But the time passes a lot quicker than you think."

Rhonda sighed as she looked in the mirror.

"I ate too much of that ice cream since I've been here," she said, looking at her profile.

Chris laughed.

"You look just fine," she said, "You're going to make a beautiful bride."

Fran just rolled her eyes.

"Shut up Rhonda," she said, "If you want to talk about not fitting into your dress, remember I was pregnant at my own wedding."

Rhonda smiled.

"But you still looked great," she said, "I just want to look great on the most important day of my life."

"You will," Chris said, "We'll make sure you're the most beautiful woman there when you walk down the aisle."

Rhonda nodded.

"Yeah, but I wish C.J. would get her butt here," she said, "I called the cabin and no one picked up."

"She's out with Matt wrapping up some loose ends in the rancher's case," Chris said, "She said they shouldn't be gone long."

"Now there's an interesting couple," Rhonda said, "but I can't see either of them with anyone else."

Chris scratched her head.

"I didn't see it coming," she said, "I've known and worked with them a long time but they always were in relationships with other people."

"Yeah but none of them lasted," Rhonda said, "Because they weren't meant to."

Fran snorted.

"So when did you, Rhonda the realist get to be such a romantic?"

Rhonda gave her a pithy look.

"When I fell in love," she said, "but a part of me will be glad when this wedding stuff is over with so Jonathan and I can get back on our road trip."

* * *

Daniels waved his gun at all the people in the diner, not able to decide which person posed the biggest threat.

"You might as well give it up Daniels," Matt said, "The outside agencies have men at your station right now just waiting to pick you up for questioning."

"I'm not going to tell them a damn thing," Daniels said, "I didn't commit any crimes."

"Maybe that's true, maybe not in a direct sense," Matt said, "but you facilitated in the commission of crimes including against these two ladies and then you obstructed any attempt at investigation."

"That's your word," Daniels said, "against the world of a recognized long-term law enforcement officer who's never lost a sheriff election."

"I think your streak's in trouble," Matt said, "I don't think the people in the county would elect you dog catcher now. Of course, you might have the politicians' votes but there aren't that many of them."

C.J. sighed.

"You might as well call it a career because you're not getting away with it anymore," she said.

Daniel's eyes blazed in anger.

"That's coming from a woman who got herself arrested and put in one of my jail cells," he said, "Why don't you keep your mouth shut."

She just flashed him a steely gaze.

"You tried to shut it already, didn't you," she said, "And you and your men failed. The ranchers won the lawsuit and Kilroy Development and all its backers in Silver Lode are finished."

Matt nodded.

"They're all being rounded up as we speak," he said, "Of course some of them were arrested already and are on their way to cool their heels in federal custody."

Ray just shook his head.

"Daniels, get out of my establishment," he said, "I got a whole crowd of people that are waiting to try our newest dish."

"It was delicious," Sydney piped up.

Ray smiled at her.

"You going to give me a good writeup in your paper?"

"I will if this ends peacefully," she said, "Multiple murders and hostage taking sells more papers but I have seen enough bloodshed."

Ray sighed and tried to clean some tables before Daniels started waving the gun in his direction again.

"Stop that," he said, "I want you standing where I can see you."

Ray folded his arms.

"And I want you out of my restaurant."

C.J. turned to Matt.

"We've got to get to the wedding rehearsal," she said, "Rhonda's going to kill us if we're late or we miss it."

Matt nodded.

"We'll try to wrap this up quickly."

Daniels grew even more agitated.

"Shut up or I will start shooting," he said.

Matt put his hand up.

"You need to give yourself up and call it a day," he said, "I'm sure that they can arrange to put you protective custody."

Daniels shook his head.

"No, I'll be right with some of the people I put away," he said.

Matt stepped forward and slowly reached out his hand.

"Just hand me the gun," he said.

Daniels looked indecisive. C.J.'s heart stayed in her throat as she watched, hoping that Daniels wouldn't reach for the trigger.

"I can't go to jail," Daniels whispered.

"You can't go on the run either," Matt said, "You'll never get away with it."

Daniels looked around the diner and he lowered his gun slightly. Matt stepped a little closer. Daniels kept looking around.

"We can work something out Daniels," Matt said, "No one has to die."

Daniels continued to stand there and C.J. grew hopeful that he might surrender and end this whole episode. Then she saw movement out of the corner of her eye and so did Daniels. Parker had disobeyed Matt's order to sit tight and had wandered out into the main room of the diner.

"What in blazes is going on here," Parker said, taking in the sight.

Daniels spun around and without thinking fired his gun. The bullet struck Parker knocking him on the ground. Matt looked at Daniels who suddenly started panicking again and took off in a sprint towards the door. Matt chased after him but Daniels ran like a bat out of hell towards his car, got inside and while Matt jumped onto the hood of it, he started the engine and put the car in reverse. Matt struggled to hang on but he couldn't get a good grip on the car. A windshield wiper broke in his hand and when Daniels shifted the gear forward, he felt himself sliding off. He knew from experience that falling into the path of a moving car never worked out well so he concentrated on shifting his balance so that he landed to the side of the sedan as it sped off.

C.J. came running out of the diner and saw Matt on the ground. She helped him up onto his feet.

"How's Parker," he asked.

She looked back at the diner.

"He just got nicked in the shoulder," she said, "The owner's calling 911."

"They're going to have to put out another APD on Daniels," Matt said, brushing his pants off.

"I suppose so," she said, "They'll catch up with him. We've got to get back to the ranch after we give the information to the police."

He nodded.

Sydney came out of the diner.

"That Parker is rambling something awful," she said, "He's ready to confess to the whole thing."

Matt put his arm around C.J.'s shoulder.

"We'd better go in and listen to what he's got to say before he passes out from blood loss," he said.

Parker indeed was lying on the floor of Ray's restaurant ready to spill out his life story including several sordid chapters to anyone willing to listen.

"Someone write this all down before he passes out," Matt said.

"I'm already on it," Sydney said, "This will be our front page story…well second to the wedding of the year of course."

Matt nodded, as he heard the squad cars begin to pull up and he recognized several state police officers who walked into the diner. One officer took it all in.

"Call an ambulance for this guy," he said.

"It's Mayor Parker to you," he said, as indignantly as he could under the circumstances.

Another officer looked at Matt and C.J.

"I need to get statements from both of you and the cook too…"

Ray crossed his arms again.

"I'm not the cook," he said, "I own this fine establishment."

The officer nodded and then gestured to Sydney.

"Who's taking his statement over there?"

"That's Sydney," C.J. said, "She's a reporter for the local newspaper."

The officer blanched.

"Get her away from him," he said, "This is an official investigation not a press conference."

Matt looked at Parker and then back at the officer.

"Nice of you to finally arrive," he said, "You missed the main event."

The officer nodded.

"I know, Sheriff Daniels won't get far," he said, "We've got a dragnet out looking for him right now."

Matt wished he could believe him.

* * *

Rhonda returned from the kitchen.

"I just heard from C.J.," she said, "She and Matt had a run-in with Sheriff Daniels and he held everyone in some diner at gunpoint for a while but the police are there to take care of it."

Chris shook her head.

"Never a dull moment," she said, "So what is their ETA for the rehearsal?"

"They should be leaving soon and they'll be here in about an hour."

"That's cutting it pretty close," Fran said, "I hope everything's okay."

Rhonda sighed.

"She did mention something about the mayor being shot," he said, "but he's going to the hospital and will have a police guard over him because he's facing corruption charges."

"Oh dear," Chris said, putting her hands over her face.

"Jonathan's going to keep in touch with his friends who are feds to get more information," Rhonda said, "I guess you can take a guy out of the feds but not the fed out of the guy."

Chris narrowed her eyes.

"Would it bother you if he took those job offers?"

Rhonda paused then shook her head.

"I just want him to be happy with what he does," she said, "and it didn't seem like he was as fulfilled by his job with the U.S. Marshal's office as he was when he started."

"So when does he have to decide?"

"Not until after we're finished traveling," Rhonda said, "He's pretty sure he'll have his mind made up by then."

* * *

Matt and C.J. gave their statements to the police and then took off back towards to the ranch. Sydney told them she would finish interviewing all the key players and then get a ride back into town with her photographer.

"I think we might just make it," C.J. said, looking at her watch as they turned onto the main highway.

"I wonder where Daniels is heading," Matt said.

C.J. shrugged.

"Probably out of town," she said, "but I doubt he'll make it out of the state."

"He's an ex-cop," Matt said, "He probably has a few tricks up his sleeve."

C.J. smiled.

"What about you?"

He looked at her.

"What do you mean?"

Her eyes glimmered mischievously.

"Do you have some tricks up your sleeve?"

He smiled.

"That's for me to know and you to find out."

Suddenly Matt slowed down his car as he saw the roadblock ahead.


	54. Chapter 54

Chapter 54--The latest chapter of this FF story is up. Hope you enjoy it and thanks for the feedback!

* * *

C.J. looked at Matt.

"What do you think it is," she asked.

He frowned slowing his car to a stop near two police officers.

"I don't know," he said, "It probably has to do with Daniels."

"A checkpoint set up to catch a sheriff," C.J. said, "You don't see one of those every day."

"Wouldn't be the first time."

"No it wouldn't be," C.J. said.

The two police officers walked up to their vehicle, and just as they expected, it was to find out if they had seen the fleeing Daniels. Matt explained that the last time they had seen him he had been running away from the diner where he had held hostages.

The two men paused and started writing on their notepads.

"Is there anything else," Matt asked.

The two men looked up at him, eyebrows raised.

"We've got to get back to the ranch for the rehearsal," she explained.

They shook their heads and so Matt drove off, heading down the highway back to the ranch. If they hurried, they could just about make it.

"I don't think putting up checkpoints is going to do it," Matt said, "He might be a fugitive but he's also a long-time law enforcement officer."

"I hope they catch up to him soon," C.J. said, "I think a lot of people will rest easier."

"He can't stay in hiding for long," Matt said, "Not without any help."

"They're rounding up his help," she said, "At least that's what I hope."

Matt studied her as she sat beside him. He knew that since she had arrived at the ranch, the work to fight to save the ranch land had been relentless in its pace without hardly much time to even breathe. It would have been hard enough if the people she and others had been fighting hadn't tried to scare her off and then when that failed, tried to kill her.

"You've been working nonstop on this," Matt said, "Not much of a vacation for you."

C.J. shook her head at that.

"I had a great time Houston. I think this is the best vacation I ever had," she said, "It's been very hard work but I love this place and the people."

"Yeah they are great aren't they," Matt said, "And Brody and Uncle Roy are right, spending time in the Rockies has done me a world of good."

C.J. smiled.

"You're looking better," she said, "You look tired when you came here."

"I think I just missed being with you," he said, "I should never have stayed away so long."

She shrugged and rubbed his shoulder.

"You're here now and I wouldn't have gotten as much done if you hadn't been."

"We've always worked well together," he said, "I'm learning we do other things great together as well."

She looked out the window, nodding.

"That we do," she agreed.

"Are you sure you're going to be able to handle having me out in Texas," he asked, "Do you think the state's big enough for the both of us?

She looked at him, smiling again.

"I think so."

"I really missed moments like this when we're wrapping up a case," he said.

"I missed that part of it too. I missed being me," she said, "and I think this is the closest I've come to it in a long time."

He paused.

"When we get this wrapped up here, I have to go out to L.A. to get things sorted out there but I won't be gone long this time."

She remained quiet for a moment and he looked at her.

"What is it," he asked.

She took a deep breath and started slowly.

"I was wondering if you'd mind if I came with you."

His eyes blinked and he looked at her, surprised.

"But I thought…"

She looked down.

"I know, but I have to move on and I can't avoid L.A. for the rest of my life," she said, "I've got friends there too."

"I want you to come along," Matt said, "Brody will look forward to seeing you again too."

"It's been a while hasn't it?"

"Of course, he's planning on proposing."

C.J. laughed.

"He's married."

"Well that might make things a bit difficult on the home front," he said.

C.J.'s eyes sparkled as she considered that.

"I might think about it," she said, "He's a great guy."

"I might have to talk you out of it and if that doesn't work..."

"I'll look forward to that," she said.

* * *

They finally got back to the ranch and stopped by the main house. Their friends were waiting there for them.

"I thought you'd never show up," Rhonda said, her arms folded.

"We just had some loose ends to tie up," C.J. said, "We're all yours now."

"The minister's waiting," Rhonda said, "It's okay, the groom to be just got here a minute ago."

C.J. looked up and saw Jonathan talking with Jed.

"So what was he doing?"

Rhonda sighed.

"He heard about the APB they put out on Sheriff Daniels," she said, "and Mayor Parker has been hospitalized with a bullet wound and they have state police all over his hospital room."

C.J. smiled at her friend.

"I don't think you have anything to worry about with him," she said, "He really cares about you and you're going to have a great wedding tomorrow."

Rhonda nodded.

"I plan to," she said, "I'm not going to let anything interfere with it."

"Nothing will," C.J. reassured her, "You'll get through the ceremony, you'll be married and you can get back on your motorcycles and get back to your road trip."

Rhonda ran her hand through her hair.

"It will be great when it's just the two of us," she said, "Don't get me wrong. I love having you all here but…"

"I know what you mean," C.J. said, "You don't have to explain yourself to me."

"So what's next for you and Matt," Rhonda said, "Now that you've saved the valley from the predatory developers and crooked politicians and sheriffs?"

C.J. thought about it.

"We might stay here for a few more days," she said, "and then we're heading back to Houston with a detour in L.A."

Rhonda's mouth hung open.

"I thought you were never going back there."

C.J. sighed and looked away.

"I thought that way for a long time," she said, "but I've got friends and he's got family there and I want to be there with him. I can't be afraid forever."

"You're going to be okay C.J.," Rhonda said, "Nothing's going to happen to you there. He won't let it."

C.J. smiled, looking over at Matt talking to Jed and Jonathan.

"I know," she said, "and he's giving up a lot by moving to Texas."

Rhonda snorted.

"It's always been home for him and you're there and I think he's got everything he needs or wants there," she said, "Him moving there makes perfect sense."

"I want him to be there," C.J. said, "I just want him to be happy."

"Why wouldn't he be?"

"No reason," C.J. said, "I've just started to get my bearings again but I still have a ways to go."

"He knows that," Rhonda said, "He's been there with you anyway and he knows what lies ahead. Matt doesn't run away from challenges and he doesn't leave the people he loves."

"Me neither," C.J. said, "and I love him. I can't imagine living away from him."

Rhonda shrugged.

"Then you shouldn't have to because it seems like everything's going to work out for both of you and it's about time."

* * *

Matt scratched the back of his neck.

"I'm a bit worried about Daniels running around loose but the police are looking for him," he said.

"They'll find him Matt," Jed said, "There's really no place for him to go. He's got few friends here and most of them are being locked up even as we speak."

"I just don't like the thought that he might pull some surprises," Matt said.

"We'll keep an eye out for him," Jed said.

Jonathan nodded.

"They'll be feds and state policed in town and at the wedding tomorrow in case any unexpected appearances are planned."

"He'd be crazy to show up here," Jed said, "but then Daniels has had his unpredictable side."

Jonathan turned to Matt.

"So you heading back to L.A. after the wedding?"

He nodded.

"Just to get things organized before I…we return to Houston," he said, "C.J.'s going with me."

Jed and Jonathan looked at each other.

"Is she going to be okay?"

"I think she's going to be just fine," Jed said, "She wouldn't return there unless she was ready."

"Still that's where it happened," Jonathan said, "It's got to be difficult."

"She doesn't want to be afraid of a city anymore, especially one where she does have a lot of fond memories," Matt said, "We both do."

"She's going to have to come back there for the trial anyway," Jonathan said.

Jed narrowed his brows.

"That case is going to trial?"

"The U.S. Attorney's office will be appearing in court to schedule a trial date," Jonathan said, "It will probably be in the next six months. C.J. will be notified well ahead of time of course as she's a very important witness."

"We're going to have to sit down and have several meetings before she does testify," Matt said, "She's going to require some protection. There's still some principals running around out there."

Jonathan sighed.

"The feds are aware of that and are still actively investigating," he said, "They'll find the leftovers Matt."

"I have a little trouble believing that based on their track record," Matt said.

"And I don't blame you for that," Jonathan said, "I have my own feelings about how this whole situation has been handled."

"You did resign from the Marshal's office," Matt said, "but you're thinking about another round with the feds."

Jonathan nodded.

"I'm thinking about it," he said, "Nothing's definite yet."

* * *

Thea and Bonnie joined C.J. and Rhonda.

"Where are Chris and Fran," Bonnie asked.

"Oh they're still cooing over Fran's babies," Rhonda said, "They'll be here soon. Is Reverend Blakely here yet?"

Thea nodded.

"He's waiting outside," he said, "He's ready to get this rehearsal on the road."

Butterfly buzzed by with her video camera.

"I'm ready to start shooting…"

Everyone stared at her.

"With a camera of course," she said, rolling her eyes, "You've really got to learn the lingo."

Thea looked at C.J.

"You've had an eventful couple of days," she said, "How are you doing?"

C.J. smiled.

"I'm feeling better," she said, "and excited about the wedding tomorrow."

"How's Matt?"

She smiled wider.

"He's fine," she said, "We're fine."

"That's great," Thea said, "I knew you would be."

C.J. rubbed her eyes.

"I'm going with him to L.A."

Thea's eyes widened a bit but she nodded.

"I think you're ready for that," she said.

"I think I am too," C.J. said, "I hope I am but I've got to know that I can handle this and move on with my life."

"You won't be alone this time," Thea said, "and those men who kidnapped you won't be there."

C.J. breathed deeply.

"I know that's in the past," she said, "but I'm still a bit nervous about being in a building I worked in for years."

"That's natural considering what happened," Thea said, "It'll pass, you'll see."

"I just remember thinking that night that everything would be okay if I could just prove that Houston hadn't done anything wrong," she said, "That he had nothing to do with any terrorists."

"You've come a long way since that night," Thea said, "You've still got some things to work out but you've made a life for yourself and you have a man to share it."

* * *

Matt walked over to where they were standing.

"What are you two still talking about," he said, "We've got a rehearsal to go to."

She looked up at him and nodded. He wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her close as they walked outside with the others.

Later, they lay in bed, snuggled in each other's arms with her head resting on his chest. The rehearsal had gone smoothly and was videotaped for future viewings by Butterfly. Jonathan and Rhonda had remembered all their lines and as C.J. watched them, she felt happiness fill her because indeed, they were perfect for each other. She had loved Jonathan in the past and still did as a close friend who owed him a great deal including her life. She really wanted him and Rhonda to be happy together. Even though Blakely had his own misgivings about the couple he was about to marry, he smiled and hugged them wishing them well until the next day when they would be doing it for real.

Everyone headed back to the ranch for dinner and an evening of laughter and great company. He and C.J. begged off early because well, they wanted to get back to the cabin and finish out the day together. Every moment they spent together, falling more and more in love.

He stroked her hair.

"You know we really should do some fishing in that lake before we head to L.A."

She lifted her head to look at him.

"Really," she said, "I thought you'd had enough the other night with the guys."

"We haven't gone on our own fishing trip together," he said, "and I can already feel the tension coming back and the stress of city life."

She playfully slapped him.

"Oh you can can you," she said, "and what would the remedy be?"

"A couple more days spent in the arms of a beautiful woman," he said, "Fishing on the banks of the lake. Relaxing under the stars. Slow dancing to our own music. That kind of thing."

She pretended to consider it.

"I might be able to fill that bill," she said, "If you're interested in a brunette who's been in love with you for as long as she can remember."

He blinked his eyes looking at her, silent for a moment and then he smiled trying to look nonchalant.

"I guess you'll do just fine," he said, pulling her closer.

The phone rang suddenly, interrupting their interlude.

"I'd better go get that," she said, "I wonder who could be calling this time of night."

He watched her get up and pick up the phone. Her face grew troubled.

"What is it C.J.?"

She turned around and faced him after hanging up.

"That was Jed," she said, "He said that Daniels headed out to the Hyatt ranch with a gun and he's going after the mustangs."


	55. Chapter 55

Chapter 55---Here's the latest chapter of this fanfiction. Hope you like it, thanks for reading and the feedback.

* * *

After receiving the phone call from Jed, Matt and C.J. had dressed quickly and driven to the barn to saddle up their horses to head out to the Wyatt ranch land. The sky, a velvety black dusted with thousands of stars provided a backdrop to the silence of midnight as they walked into the barn, listening to the horses whinnying at their arrival.

C.J. grabbed her tack and went to get Sienna who got up quickly from where she had lain in her bed of straw. While saddling her, C.J. marveled at the mare's ability to switch to her game face so effortlessly. Her own stomach remained tied up in knots and she felt the adrenalin rush through her as it always did in situations like this one. She looked over at Matt who had finished saddling Whiskey and held onto the reins waiting for her and Jed. After they were done, they would ride off to meet up with Reed and several other nearby ranchers.

"Did Jonathan call the police," C.J. asked.

Jed nodded as he brought his horse over.

"They're on their way but it will take a while for them to put together a dragnet," he said.

They got on their horses outside the barn and rode off at a quick gallop across the silent meadow. While riding Sienna who know the valley better than she did, C.J. looked out to see the shadows of mustang mares with their offspring. She knew that a band of small mares and their foals hung around the abandoned Wyatt property which bordered federal land. If Daniels had indeed gone over the edge and wanted to commit mayhem, that ranch would be his destination.

When they reached the ranch, C.J. and the others pulled the reins on their horses as Reed and two other ranchers also on horseback approached them.

"Have you seen Daniels," Jed asked.

"No," Reed answered, "But we've heard him. He's firing off shots near federal land."

One of the other ranchers pointed out the direction and C.J. and the others heard the stillness of the night broken by the staccato of gunfire.

"Has he shot any of them," C.J. asked.

"We don't think so," Reed said, "but we've got to get there and stop him before he does."

They all rode over where the gunfire came from, following the sounds which became louder as they rode. C.J. hoped that the horse would be safe from Daniels' plan for violence and that they would get there in time to stop him.

* * *

Matt and C.J. rode their horses down to the creek where they had first decided to become friends years ago when they were kids. They had been working hard repairing fences on her uncle's ranch while he remained laid up with broken ribs from being kicked by a yearling he had been training. C.J. had been putting in more hours working hard since his accident, from sunup to sundown and after a quick dinner, she crashed in her bed and slept until she had to get up and do it all over again. Matt had pitched them and helped, honoring the unwritten code among the ranchers in that corner of Texas to help each other when it was needed, no questions asked. They worked well together, passing off the hours talking good naturedly as they completed each task.

The work had ended early that day so taking advantage of the hot summer afternoon, they had both decided to head towards the trees which shaded the bubbling creek. They had just graduated from high school two months before and would be headed to continue their studies at the university in the autumn with some of their friends.

They got off their horses and after tying them up, sat down on the grassy banks as they often did when they had the chance. C.J. just lay back, resting her head in a soft spot that she favored.

"Thanks for the push," she said, "He's so stubborn and wants to do everything himself but the doctor says he has to take it easy."

Matt chuckled.

"You'd have to bulldog him and tie him down," he said, "He's like Daddy in that respect."

"Are you ready for school," she asked.

He looked down at her, sensing some nervousness in her voice behind her easy smile.

"Are you?"

She leaned up on her elbows and tilted her head at him.

"Don't answer a question with a question."

His mouth twitched.

"Well, are you, because I am and I don't want to be the only one," he said, lifting his brows like he always did when he felt she took things too seriously.

She smiled at him, not able to help herself.

"A little," she said, "It's going to be such a big change. I mean high school was tough taking all those AP classes but I don't know if I'm ready…"

"You," he asked, "Class valedictorian. Voted most likely to succeed. Voted as having the best smile…"

She slapped his arm playfully.

"You made that last part up."

"I guess I did," he said, "C.J., you have nothing to be worried about. You're going to do just fine. You always do."

She nodded, feeling better about that. Her studies had always come easier to her than they did to most students in her class. Not that she ever minded studying, anything to get her closer to her dream of attending Harvard School of Law and being an attorney. No one ever had to push her to achieve because she always motivated herself to do better. But there was more to life than studying and taking tests. Growing serious again, she looked away from him, flicking some small leaves off of her shirt.

"Kyle and I broke up."

Matt narrowed his eyes. She had been an item with the star athlete and president of her senior class for nearly two years. She had found out a week ago that Kyle had enlisted in the Marines and would be going to basic training.

"You did," he said, "I thought you had decided to stay together despite his enlistment."

She shrugged.

"He thought we both needed to go our separate ways," she said, "Trying to make a long distance relationship work is very hard and we had our problems right here at home."

Matt thought he knew what some of those problems were but didn't say anything.

"His mistake," he just said.

She sighed.

"It was a mutual decision," she said, "It wasn't him. Maybe it was me."

* * *

They neared the Wyatt Ranch and could see the burnt lumber from one of its barns still piled on the ground from the earlier fire but Daniels was nowhere in sight. C.J. focused her gaze on the patch of trees that were in the distance where she thought she saw movement. Was it Daniels, one of the horses…

"Come on," she said, to the others, "It's over there."

They took off riding.

* * *

Matt had looked at her when she had said that she had been the one who had initiated the breakup with Kyle. She felt her face flush and kept her hands busy as she always did when she felt nervous.

"What do you mean," he asked.

She looked away back out at the water.

"That's just what Julia asked me," she said.

"She cares about you just like I do."

C.J. sighed, wrapping her arms around herself.

"I know that," she said, "We hardly saw each other anyway. What with my having to spend most of my free time working on the ranch…"

"He knew that was only temporary until your uncle got better," Matt said.

"He's not like us," she said, "He doesn't come from ranching."

Matt frowned.

"That shouldn't make any difference," he said, "If you love the guy and he loves you, then there's nothing else that really matters."

C.J. paused, trying to find the words.

"I don't love him," she said.

Matt looked up at her startled.

* * *

C.J. looked through the dim lighting from the moon shining and saw him standing ahead. She pulled her reins a little and shifted her body weight and Sienna responded by turning slightly as she galloped towards Daniels. Ahead, she saw a mustang mare and her young colt, outlined in the shadows. Daniels stood nearby carrying his shotgun. He looked up and saw her suddenly, coming towards him. C.J. looked behind her as she rode and saw the others behind her. She clicked to Sienna and headed towards the area where the mustangs stood. The mustangs didn't shy away from her as she approached them and placed herself and Sienna between them and Daniels. Sienna appeared to know what was being asked of her and stood still, as Daniels began to approach with his shotgun.

"Get away from them," he yelled, "If we can't have the land, then they can't either."

C.J. didn't move as the other riders began to approach.

"It's over Daniels," she said, "It's time to give it up. The rest of your partners are already in custody."

"It will never be over," Daniels said, "If it's not us who will take the land it will be someone else."

"That might be," C.J. said, "but it won't happen today and it won't be you."

Daniels aimed his gun at C.J. and the mustangs but she still didn't move. Matt dismounted from his horse near some trees and began walking towards Daniels.

"Get out of the way or I'll shoot you too," Daniels screamed.

C.J. stood her ground.

"I'm not moving."

Matt approached Daniels, hoping to get closer before Daniels heard him. Hoping to reach him before he shot at C.J. and the mustangs.

* * *

He looked at her totally confused.

"I thought…"

She shook her head.

"I really care about him," she said, "But I love the land and my life here and some day I'm going to find a great guy who feels the same way."

"But I thought you were going to be a big shot attorney and lived in some big city."

She smiled at him then tilted her head.

"I said I'm going to be an attorney who helps people," she said, "but this is my home and it always will be…at least inside until I come home."

Matt felt the emotion in her voice as much as he heard it and knew where it came from. Some place familiar to him. He didn't say anything so she looked over at him.

"It probably sounds strange doesn't it?"

He looked at her for a long moment before he answered.

"No, it doesn't sound strange at all."

* * *

Matt crept closer to Daniels who was leveling his shotgun at C.J. and the horses. C.J. saw him approaching and her heart jumped. She turned her attention quickly back to Daniels.

"If you turn yourself in, they'll go easier on you," she said.

He shook his head.

"They'll stick me in prison and I might as well go in there with a target on my back," Daniels said, "for every criminal I ever put away."

"I'm not going to let you hurt these horses," she said.

He moved closer, adjusting his hold on his shotgun.

"You'd better get out of my way," Daniels said, "or I'll shoot you."

She shook her head.

"No you won't," she said, keeping the reins tight on her horse, "You'll stop this whole thing right now before someone else gets hurt."

He laughed harshly.

"I have no intention of ending up like Nick," Daniels said, "Done in by a woman."

She looked at him steadily.

"He got what he deserved," she said.

He shifted his weight, as Matt neared him and she dismounted from Sienna. Her own heart beat quickly in her chest as she looked back into the barrel of his gun. Not knowing how unstable he was, she had to tread cautiously. She had every intention of walking away from him after she made sure that the mustangs were safe.

He laughed again.

"You killed him," Daniels said, "and you're looking at me as if I'm the murderer."

"I had to, to get where I am," she said, "I had too much to live for."

His eyes hardened.

"Not if I take it away," he said, aiming the gun at her.

She stepped backward, still placing herself between Daniels and the mustangs and looked over his shoulder watching Matt reaching over to grab Daniels. He spun around and with the shotgun, knocked Matt on the ground. C.J.'s breath caught in her throat. Jed and the other men got off of their horses to run over. Daniels hit Matt again with his shotgun and jumped onto his feet, grabbing it and running towards the mustangs. C.J. knew at that moment that he had surely lost it as she saw him try to aim the gun at them again. She ran to grab him and try to wrestle the weapon out of his hand but he swung it wildly. She had to duck to avoid getting struck in the head and out of the corner of her eye, she saw Matt get up and run towards them.

Suddenly, the sound of screaming filled the night air.

* * *

She had looked at him and smiled as they sat by the creek, talking about the land they loved so much. At some point, he had reached out for her hand and had wrapped it in his and she had leaned her head against his shoulder. He wrapped his arm around her and pulled her closer.

"How long have we been friends," she asked.

He looked at her thoughtfully.

"Since we were kids," he said, "and you were sitting at my fishing spot."

She laughed.

"You were very good about sharing it," she said, then her forehead furrowed.

"I didn't have a choice," he said, "You had a mean right hook."

She smiled softly.

"Not the best introduction," she said, "I think I've softened my approach since."

Matt raised his brow. Hardly, if anything she had become more spirited than when he had first seen her in the school yard. And she had grown more beautiful. Her hair had grown out in luxurious curls, a warm mahogany shade and her eyes sparkled at him, as they talked.

"And I've learned that diplomacy is the best course and not my fists. Mind over body…"

"C.J…"

She blinked and looked at him looking at her.

"What," she said.

And that's when he kissed her.

* * *

C.J. looked up and saw the dun colored stallion as she approached, galloping towards the horses. Daniels saw the horse too and his eyes widened. Diablo De Sol reared and screamed, sending chills through C.J. Daniels tried to ward off the stallion with his gun, but Diablo knocked it out of his hands. Matt approached behind Daniels and grabbing him, pulled him out of the path of the angry horse and pushed him on the ground. Diablo then moved towards the mare and her foal and nipping at her, urging her along until she started running. He swung his head to look at C.J. and she locked eyes with him for a moment, before he lifted his head and then turned around to take off across the meadow in a gallop. She stood there transfixed for a moment watching him until he faded into the tapestry of the night as quickly as he had appeared.

Daniels tried to push up against Matt but he and Jed put their weight on him so that he couldn't move.

"It's time to give it up," Jed said, "There's nothing else for you to do."

Daniels sunk on the ground knowing that he was right. C.J. walked over to where Matt stood after they had gotten Daniels on his feet. Reed and the other ranchers helped Jed restrain Daniels for the trip back to the county jail where he would be sitting with the rest of his buddies.

She stroked his face where a bruise had begun to form.

"Are you okay," she said.

He nodded as she put her arm around him and they walked away.

"I am now."

* * *

Later, they sat in the kitchen of the cabin unable to sleep. In the morning, they would be standing witness as two of their friends exchanged vows and got married. C.J. made some tea and poured him a cup. He sipped it thoughtfully, thinking of everything that had taken place since his arrival and he smiled when he thought of the woman beside him. C.J. looked deep in thought, not touching her tea.

"A penny for your thoughts," he said.

She looked up at him startled, her face flushing pink. Now he was really curious and raised his brows. She rewarded him with a smile.

"Oh I was just thinking of that time at the creek," she said.

Now Matt knew that there had been many times that they had spent together at one of their favorite spots but he also knew which time she had been thinking about.

"Oh," he said simply.

"I don't know why," she said, "but it's been on my mind. I didn't want you to think…"

He nodded.

"C.J.," he said, "You made the right decision at the time."

"But…"

"No buts," he countered, "Everything we did in our lives brought us to where we are now," he said, "and I'm not trading what we've got now for anything."

She fidgeted with her mug.

"Me neither," she said, "I think I loved you even back then."

He grew thoughtful.

"I think I did too which is why I…"

"Yeah," she finished, putting her mug aside, "It's getting late. We'd better get to bed."

"C.J., it's nearly daybreak, it's too late…"

She got up and walked over to him and wrapped her arms around him bringing him into a kiss.

"It's never too late…"

He followed her out of the kitchen and discovered she was right.


	56. Chapter 56

Here's the final chapter of this FF. Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed it and thanks for the feedback.

* * *

She looked down from the top of the building at the lights blinking below, thinking about how far she had come. Behind her, her friends and family had gathered inside the penthouse suite for a party complete with delicious food and good music. She had mingled and enjoyed herself for an hour or so catching up with everyone she had missed for so long while she had fought her way back from the darkness to rebuilding her life, in the light.

He joined her a few moments later, as she knew he would and stood beside her in silence as they both took in the breathless sights of L.A. He dressed in black tie, with the tie of course askew around his neck and she, in her favorite white summer dress, which accentuated her tanned skin and dark mahogany hair which framed her face with curls resting on her shoulders.

After they had apprehended Daniels before he could harm any of the mustangs, they had spent the next day witnessing the wedding of their close friends, Jonathan and Rhonda which had been one of the most beautiful ceremonies that they had ever attended. The bride and groom recited their own vows surrounded by members of their wedding party including C.J. who had been the maid of honor and all videotaped for posterity by Butterfly who at this time was carefully editing her material into its final product to be burned on DVDs to send out to everyone who attended. After the wedding and an afternoon of dining and dancing, Jonathan and Rhonda had ditched their guests, changed their clothes and got on their bikes to continue on with their road trip. C.J. and Matt had stayed a couple more days, spending them fishing in the lake, hanging out with their friends and spending nights enjoying the starry splendor of the Rockies and each other before heading back to L.A.

Before they left for the airport to board his jet, Matt had asked her one more time if she were sure she were ready to return to L.A. and the corporate building where she had been abducted over a year before by men working for Andre Duval. She looked at him and nodded yes and he knew then she had come home.

Walking back into the building had not been easy but C.J. with Matt beside her walked into the garage. She closed her eyes for a second until the sensations passed and her heart beat slowed down. The fleeting sights and sounds of that night hit her, the scent of chloroform as she remembered it threatened to smother her. But she took a few deep breaths to ground herself in the present and the feelings soon ebbed. Matt looked at her, concern in his eyes until she smiled at him. She asked him to leave her alone for a few minutes and he nodded before walking away so that she could put those demons to rest that had kept her away.

After she had finished doing that, she took the elevator up to the top floor and as it opened, her eyes widened as she saw the large group of people congregated in the suite, eating food and she listened to the sounds of chatter and laughter that filled the room. Roy manned the bar along with Vince Novelli who had decided to stop and visit some old buddies and haunts in L.A. before heading back to his family in Miami. Hoyt stood near the door to the helipad talking with his former LAPD colleague Brody. Brody walked over to where C.J. remained standing.

"What's going on here," she asked with a smile.

"Matt's been planning this for days," Brody said, "He had me working on it even though organizing parties is clearly not in my job description."

She looked around the room at the people enjoying themselves.

"Wait a minute," she said, "How did he know I even was going to accompany him to L.A. I just decided…"

Brody smiled.

"He knew it was something you needed to do," he said, "He was just trying to make it easier for you."

Her smile broadened and she walked over to hug him.

"This is very nice," she said, kissing him on the cheek, "Thank you."

"The pleasure's mine," Brody said, "It's great to see you again. That was quite an adventure you had in Colorado."

"It worked out very well in the end," she said, "The ranchers got what they wanted which was to keep their land and their way of life."

"And what about you?"

"I got what I always wanted too," she said.

"He's in the kitchen checking on the food," Brody said, "I do have to thank you for whatever you did or said to him. I've never seen him this relaxed, even about the workload at the agency."

"You can blame that on the pristine mountain air," she said, with a laugh.

He laughed and she left him to head to the kitchen. The odors of chili hit her along with the sound of more laughter. She saw Matt standing by the stove talking to a vivacious woman she knew had to be Ginger. Both of them looked up when they saw her.

"This is such a wonderful party," C.J. said, "Brody told me you'd been working on it."

Matt and Ginger looked at each other.

"Well it started out much smaller but I think it turned out wonderful," Ginger said, extending her hand, "You must be C.J."

C.J. shook it.

"And you're Ginger who works at the county art museum," she said.

Ginger nodded.

"I was just telling Matt here not to worry about the bill for damages from the charity bachelor auction," she said, "They've been paid for in full by a mysterious benefactor."

Matt scratched his head.

"It really wasn't that bad C.J.," he said, "except for the ice sculpture of what's his name…"

"Adonis," Ginger said.

"We could have paid for it out of what's left in the broken furniture fund," C.J. said, winking at him.

He coughed.

"Apparently that won't be necessary."

Ginger looked at the two of them.

"Should I sign you up for next year's auction," she asked.

Matt put his arm around C.J.

"I'll tell you what," he said, "I think I'll just send a check."

Ginger nodded.

"That'll work," she said, "So what's next for the two of you?"

"I've got to get back to work in a few days," C.J. said, "My vacation's just about over."

"I'm going to do some contracting with a friend's security firm," Matt said, "At least until I decide whether or not to set up a new franchise of my investigative agency in Houston."

Matt and C.J. looked at each other.

"Then we're going to go out and look at some ranch land," she said, "So we only have to work in Houston."

Ginger smiled.

"That sounds really nice," she said, "Just promise you won't make yourself too scarce."

C.J. nodded, thinking of all the promises she had made in the past several years that one was pretty easy.

* * *

She sighed as she watched the sky darken from a navy blue to a darker black, a crescent moon shining above the city. After she had eaten some great food and had enjoyed her friends, she had wandered out to the place she often sought when she needed to reflect on her life. She and Matt were spending the night at his beach house in Malibu and then heading out to the airport to take the jet back to Houston. There, her life waited and now it seemed his life waited for him too, their new life they were building together. She had checked her phone messages and her supervisor called her with news on a new case. Her realtor called to report that she had found some property just outside of Houston for her to look at. Chris and Dan and their family along with Fran, Carlos and the twins were back there getting back in the swing of things with Butterfly filling Chris and Dan with stories of all the great film schools she wanted to visit. Chris had sighed with the latest news that Butterfly had switched from wanting to make films about vampires and zombies to focusing on documentaries. C.J. had smiled realizing that the experiences that Butterfly had during the summer had rubbed off on her even though she had pretty much forgotten about poor Carter by the time her plane landed back in Texas.

Everything seemed to be coming together at last.

She looked over at Matt just as he looked at her and he took her hand in his and they both looked out towards the journey they would be taking together. C.J. thought back to the visions that had flashed through her mind when she felt her life slipping away again, images of her life with the man she loved and children. Were they glimpses of her own future? She hoped so.

"Great party," she said.

He shrugged.

"We have a lot of great friends," he said.

She smiled.

"Yeah we do."

"But you're my best friend," he said, bringing her hand to his lips and kissing it.

She said nothing then, just reached to touch his face with her fingers. Then they walked back towards the penthouse together. As they entered, they heard the phone ring and decided to let the answering machine pick it up because whatever it was, could wait. The caller on the other end frowned in disappointment that no one answered not that it mattered because his message required few words.

"_It's not over yet…"_


End file.
